Just looked up the stats: http://guardian.gg/en/weapon-stats?platform=2&start=2017-01-23&end=2017-02-21&mode=13&activity=0 During the height of the "Clever Dragon" meta, Pulses where responsable in Rumble for a whopping 10% of all kills, while Handcannons got only a measly 30%. It is clear that the only thing Bungie could do to rectify this skewed situation was to buff Handcannons and nerf Pulses. Great Job. Update: Some people complain that I chose Rumble. I chose Rumble, because the stats best reflect single player strength. No team based tactical advantages skew the result in any direction. One player, one gun. But for the sake of it here we go (all data are from the month before that patch - format is Hc%-Pulse%) Clash: 20-14, Skirmish: 24-10, Control: 20-15, Rift: 20-15, Elimination: 22-9 There is not one game mode where Pulses where dominant or even used more than HCs. It seems the high skill HCs are the preferred choice of Sam and Joe Guardian. Pulses are a weapon for the few. They nerfed the wrong weapon.