Welcome to the Foetracer Strand Hunter Build! Foetracer, when combined with Strand Hunter, is an extremely strong ad clear option that also provides extensive survivability with Woven Mail. In addition, you get on demand damage buffs for your Strand weapons for 10 seconds after damaging a powerful combatant with an ability, then defeating that marked target spawns a Tangle to utilize the Whirling Maelstrom Aspect.
The Foetracer works by damaging an Elite, Miniboss, Champion, or Boss with ability damage, which then marks that target and grants the wearer a 25% weapon damage buff to the type matching the ability's element for 10 seconds. If you defeat the marked target, a corresponding subclass elemental pickup spawns, in this build's case, a Tangle.
With this build you are able to have several Whirling Maelstrom active at one time. This excels in high ad density activities. The biggest limiting factor of this build is Tangle cooldown.
WARNING: Quicksilver Storm requires Lightfall DLC to be obtained.
- Woven Mail
- Ability Spam
- Strong Ad Clear
- 25% Damage Buffs
- Lower Sustained DPS
- Must Use Strand Weapons
- Requires Powerful Combatants
Gameplay Loop
The start of this loop consists of building up grenade launcher shots for your Quicksilver Storm. This way, you can create Tangles on command with final blows with the grenade launcher form. Upon creating a Tangle, shoot it if it is near a group of enemies, or pick it up and throw it at a group to trigger Whirling Maelstrom. If there are multiple Tangles, you can repeat this process to unleash more Maelstroms.
Upon encountering a powerful combatant, use your grenade or melee to damage them and give yourself a 25% damage boost to your Strand weapons for the next 10 seconds. Try to eliminate them if possible to create another Tangle and continue sending out Maelstroms.
When fighting a boss, make sure to space out your melee and grenade to keep as long of uptime on the 25% damage boost as possible. Also, do not forget to press your melee button as your Threaded Spike is returning to regain a large portion of your melee energy.
Ability Breakdown
Super
- Silkstrike - Only option for our Foetracer Strand Hunter, very useful for additional ad clear.
- [Light Attack] : Swing the rope dart in front of you to deal damage. The tip of the dart deals bonus damage, and defeating targets with the tip causes them to explode.
- [Heavy Attack] : Swing the rope dart in a circular motion to deal heavy damage all around you.
- [Grenade] : Use the grapple to move forward quickly.
Abilities
- Gambler's Dodge, Recharges Melee Ability energy when dodging near an enemy.
- Triple Jump, Jump of your choice.
- Threaded Spike, Throw a rope dart that bounces between targets, damaging and severing them. The dart returns to you once it's done, returning melee energy to you for each target hit. Press [Melee] just as the dart gets back to you to catch it and increase the amount of energy returned.
- Shackle Grenade, A thrown weapon of weighted Strand matter that detonates on impact, suspending targets and creating additional suspending subprojectiles.
Aspects
- Threaded Specter - Activating your class ability leaves behind a decoy woven from Strand matter that draws the attention of nearby combatants. After taking significant damage or when combatants approach, the decoy detonates, dealing damage and releasing Threadling that seek out and attack nearby foes.
- Whirling Maelstrom - Destroying a Tangle weaves a violent, writhing mass of Strand fibers. The Strand mass seeks out and damages targets, emitting Unravel projectiles when it defeats them.
Fragments
- Thread of Warding - Orb of Power Pickups grant Woven Mail for 10 seconds. Provides massive amounts of damage reduction and greatly increases survivability.
- Thread of Propagation - Powered Melee Kills Grant Unraveling Rounds to your Strand Weapons for 8 seconds. Unraveling Rounds greatly increase ad clear potential
- Thread of Fury - Dealing damage with Tangles grants Melee Energy. This increases uptime of our melee, and in turn, our Foetracer damage buff.
- Thread of Mind - Killing enemies affected by Suspend grants Class Ability Energy.
Gearing
Required Gear and Weapons
Foetracer This exotic is what allows us to create so many Tangle orbs to take full advantage of the Whirling Maelstrom Aspect. It also provides a large bonus to our Strand weapons and makes the Foetracer Strand Hunter possible.
How to acquire:
- Purchase from Xur (his loot rotates weekly).
- Decrypting exotic engrams at Rahool (it is a random exotic drop, but prioritizes exotics you currently do not have, known as the knockout system).
- Farm the expert lost sector on Helmet Armor days.
- Note: this exotic is not locked behind a DLC.
Recommended Weapons
- Kinetic Weapon: Quicksilver Storm - Very strong auto rifle that turns Strand with the Catalyst, and also creates Tangles for Whirling Maelstrom when defeating targets with this weapon's grenades.
- Energy Weapon: Nessa's Oblation - Powerful craftable Precision Frame Slug Shotgun from the Root of Nightmares raid. Has some of the best perk combinations for a shotgun, in this build use Envious Assassin & Vorpal Weapon
- Power Weapon: Cataphract GL3 - One of the best DPS options in the game with Envious Assassin / Bait and Switch roll. This is obtained from Trials of Osiris.
Stat Priorities
- Resilience > Discipline > Mobility.
- Resilience is the amount of damage you can take before dying, as well as your shield capacity.
- Discipline is what reduces your grenade cooldown.
- Mobility gives you more movement speed and jump height, and lowers dodge cooldown.
Learn more about the Stats available to you in Destiny 2 with our dedicated guide.
Armor Mods
- Helmet
- Harmonic Siphon - Rapid final blows create orbs of power.
- Special Ammo Finder - Spawns a Special Ammo Brick upon scoring a Weapon Kill after reaching 100% Counter Progress.
- Heavy Ammo Finder - Spawns a Heavy Ammo Brick upon scoring a Weapon Kill after reaching 100% Counter Progress.
- Gauntlets
- Harmonic Loader - Increases reload speed of Strand weapons.
- Font of Vigor - Grants 30 Strength while you have active Armor Charges.
- Focusing Strike - Grants Class Ability Energy upon dealing Powered Melee Damage. 7 second cooldown between activations.
- Chest
- Resist mods, your choice - choose for the activity you are going into!
- Leg
- Insulation - Grants 4% Class Ability Energy on Orb of Power pickup.
- Absolution - Grants 5% Grenade, Melee, and Class Ability Energy on Orb of Power pickup.
- Recuperation - Replenishes health each time you pick up an Orb of Power.
- Mark
- Time Dilation - Your decaying Armor Charge has a longer duration.
- Powerful Attraction - Use class ability to collect orbs around you automatically.
- Bomber - Reduces grenade cooldown when using your class ability.
Armor Mods are unlocked by progressing your Guardian Rank. Check out the Guardian Ranks Guide for more information.
Artifact Mods
This build does not require any artifact mods from season/episode.
Variants
- Weapons can be shifted depending on your preference.
- Any legendary Strand weapon of your choice.
- Any legendary special of your choice, shotgun, sniper, or fusion rifle.
- Koraxis's Distress - Solid Strand Grenade Launcher from the Root of Nightmares raid and craftable. The only downside is it is a Rapid Fire Frame.
Summary
Foetracer Strand Hunter offers fantastic ad clear while also providing huge burst damage to stronger targets. It is simple to use and effective while providing immense damage reduction with Woven Mail whenever you pick up an Orb of Power. Overall a solid pick for most activities within Destiny 2.
Credits
Written by: Chadly
Reviewed by: Byrdman, snail