Hello everyone, my name is Battlecrates and I'm here to share with you a short guide to what I know about fusion rifles so you can go into The Taken King knowing more! This guide is tailored to pvp, keep that in mind moving forward. First of all let's discuss the weapon basics here: 1.) The fusion rifle is a special weapon that takes time to charge up of about 2-3 seconds and then releases a burst of 7-8 particles that deal a set amount of elemental damage based on its impact. 2.) There are generally 2 types of varying degree: A.) High impact, low charge rate B.) Low impact, high charge rate Note: Some fusion rifles fall into a middling catagory when they get access to accelerated coils, however these are rare. 3.) The particles follow an algorithm that experiences no damage falloff, however the bullets fade away at max range and do fan out of the cone at the end of their range. (More about this later) Alrighty, now that you've got the weapon basics, let's talk about the two archetypes and their changes coming into Destiny: The Taken King. I will only note the ones that are of importance to you as a regular player (no need for boring theory crafting here). A.) High impact fusion rifles have lost some of their base stability and it is now harder to find range increasing perks on new TTK fusion rifles. B.) Low impact fusion rifles have had their accuracy increased slightly to promote regularity Note: Finally, a not so noticeable change in that the pellets travel slightly slower then they used to. They also had their damage increased against AI combatants! (Pve) Ok, so how does this affect you as a player in PvP? Most likely that a lower impact high charge rate fusion rifle is a smarter choice since in the new meta it has a higher accuracy and fares better against shotguns, it's number one enemy. You want to make sure your fusion rifle is a one charge kill as well, so the impact is important. You'll want to go with fusion rifles such as Perun's fire or the Exile's curse for charge rate/ impact. Going into TTK, the FWC has the fusion rifle you want in its new inventory, making it worth your marks to get ASAP. I know I'll be buying that first! Moving on to perks and usage tips, you want to assist the weapon's regularity at close to midrange with perks like Rangefinder, Braced Frame, and hidden hand post HoW to further assist the targeting algorithm. I am currently running a Perun's Fire with hidden hand, rangefinder, and braced frame and it handles fantastically! However a good pool of perks is noted here: Rangefinder: Directly increases range when aimed in Accelerated Coils: Increases charge rate at the cost of a slight damage reduction Hidden Hand: Assists in target aquistion Hip Fire: Increase hip fire accuracy Braced Frame: Increases stability at the cost of losing a charge from your mag. Of my choices, I personally use braced frame since Perun's fire is already fast enough, but pick the perks that suit you as a player. Finally, I'll go over some usage tips! 1.) Remember: Your fusion rifle takes time to charge! This is crutial to understand, this weapon takes time to master and patience to use. Don't rush into combat unless you undoubtedly have to, allow your opponents to come to you as they meet their untimely fusion rifle death! 2.) Playing aggressive is possible, just don't go crazy. Fusion rifles don't do well against strafing or moving targets unless aimed PERFECTLY. In the beginning of mastering your fusion rifle, try to understand where players come from in specific maps and stay around the choke points, push when you know they will walk into you and secure you free kills. 3.) Don't use your fusion rifle for more then it's meant for! A good tip, remember that your fusion rifle is meant for close to midrange, so it not only will suffer at extended range, it will not even do damage. There are two things to note, with a lethal perk setup you can extent a fusion rifles range to interesting highs, however this only extends about 20 yards in front of you, keep this in mind. Secondly, you will be in contention with shotguns constantly. It is detrimental to you if you try to charge while someone is already in your face. Try to charge around corners and gauge where your opponents will be. If a shot gunner is rushing you, back up to a safe distance, turn around and charge/fire. If they tried to chase you they will die 90% of the time for being overly aggressive. 4.) Have fun! Fusion rifles are an interesting weapon type, so come up with your own builds that work well for your playstyle and rock them! As long as you can play well with it, you will succeed! Well, that's my short guide to pvp fusion rifles! I'll add video links and some interesting stats as I find them, so check back for more in the future. Thanks for reading, hope you learned something! ~Battlecrates