Destiny 2 Buzzard: God Rolls and How to get it

by | May 24, 2023

Every season comes with at limited selection of exclusive Nightfall weapons; the Buzzard sidearm is part of the list. Previously a statically-rolled ritual weapon from Season of Dawn, Buzzard now has random rolls and an Adept version.

In this guide, we cover how to get Buzzard, how it compares to competitors, and exactly what rolls you should look out for.

ArtWeaponArchetypeRarityAmmoElementRequirementsIn loot pool?Ammo?Element?TierExcelsSourceCraftable?RequiresReleasedSlotCan be Crafted?Best of?Top Perk?
Buzzard artBuzzardAdaptiveLegendaryPrimaryKineticFree-to-PlayYesPrimary ammo Destiny 2 PrimaryKinetic symbol Destiny 2 Kinetic
Average

B

PvENightfall: The OrdealsError icon V2Free to Play Destiny 2 icon
Free-to-Play
Season 20KineticNoKinetic Tremors

How to get Buzzard in Season 21

There are several Nightfall-exclusive weapons in total, but as of Season of the Deep (S21), only six are currently on rotation, with only one dropping each week. This means you can only farm the Buzzard sidearm once every six weeks!

Once you unlock Buzzard in Collections, you can purchase additional copies from Zavala’s Focused Decoding screen. Each weapon costs:

  • 1 Vanguard Engram
  • 25 Legendary Shards
  • 20,000 Glimmer

2023 Nightfall weapon rotation

ArtWeaponTypeElementAmmoRotationWeek #
Warden's Law artWarden's LawHand CannonKinetic symbol Destiny 2 KineticPrimary ammo Destiny 2 Primary28 November 2023Week 1
Loaded Question art Destiny 2Loaded QuestionFusion RifleArc ArcSpecial ammo Destiny 2 Special5 December 2023Week 2
12 December 2023Week 3
19 December 2023Week 4
26 December 2023Week 5
2 January 2024Week 6
9 January 2024Week 7
16 January 2024Week 8
23 January 2024Week 9
30 January 2024Week 10
6 February 2024Week 11
13 February 2024Week 12
20 February 2024Week 13
27 February 2024Week 14
5 March 2024Week 15
12 March 2024Week 16
19 March 2024Week 17
26 March 2024Week 18
2 April 2024Week 19
9 April 2024Week 20
16 April 2024Week 21
23 April 2024Week 22
30 April 2024Week 23
7 May 2024Week 24
14 May 2024Week 25
21 May 2024Week 26
28 May 2024Week 27
Vanguard Focused Decoding

Buzzard Focused Decoding, Destiny 2

💠 This guide highlights the Nightfall weapons this season, as well as the schedule for the coming weeks.

How good is the Buzzard today

Being a sidearm, Buzzard has already been ignored by most of the PvE community. However, Buzzard is one of the better PvE sidearms we’ve seen. With perks like Perpetual Motion, Fourth Time’s the Charm, Kinetic Tremors, and Frenzy, this gun has a surprising amount going for it.

Buzzard can also get some good rolls for the Crucible. From Perpetual Motion to Swashbuckler to Rangefinder, this weapon has a wide selection of solid perks that allow anyone to excel.

All that said, Buzzard is going in the B Tier. While it’s relatively good for a sidearm, the weapon type isn’t favored in today’s meta.

Best alternatives:

ArtWeaponArchetypeRarityAmmoElementRequirementsIn loot pool?Ammo?Element?TierExcelsSourceCraftable?RequiresReleasedSlotCan be Crafted?Best of?Top Perk?
Drang (Baroque) artDrang (Baroque)Together ForeverLegendaryPrimarySolarBeyond LightYesPrimary ammo Destiny 2 PrimarySolar Solar
Best

S

PvE + PvPPresageCheckmark icon V3Beyond Light Destiny 2 icon
Beyond Light
Season 17EnergyCraftableTop-tierIncandescent
 artMykel's ReverenceRapid-FireLegendaryPrimaryStrandLightfallYesPrimary ammo Destiny 2 PrimaryStrand Element Strand
Average

B

PvERoot of Nightmares RaidCheckmark icon V3Lightfall Preorder icon
Lightfall
Season 20KineticCraftable
Senuna SI6 artSenuna SI6Omolon AdaptiveLegendaryPrimaryStasisFree-to-PlayYesPrimary ammo Destiny 2 PrimaryStasis Stasis
Strong

A

PvPLost SectorError icon V2Free to Play Destiny 2 icon
Free-to-Play
Season 20KineticNoTop-tier

Best Buzzard Rolls for PvE and PvP

We’ve covered how to get Buzzard, but what are the rolls you should look for in PvE and PvP? Read on, and we’ll explain our favorites.

Buzzard god rolls gameplay

Buzzard god rolls, Destiny 2

Buzzard PvP god roll

  • Barrel: Smallbore (also good: Hammer-Forged Rifling)
  • Magazine: Ricochet Rounds
  • Perk 1: Perpetual Motion (also good: Encore)
  • Perk 2: Swashbuckler (also good: Rangefinder)

We’ll start with Smallbore and Ricochet Rounds in the first two columns to get some extra range and stability. For your first perk, both Encore and Perpetual Motion are outstanding; which one you pick depends purely on your playstyle. In the final column, Swashbuckler is best, but there aren’t any outright terrible perks here, either.

Buzzard PvE god roll

  • Barrel: Smallbore (also good: Hammer-Forged Rifling)
  • Magazine: Ricochet Rounds (also good: Flared Magwell)
  • Perk 1: Perpetual Motion
  • Perk 2: Kinetic Tremors (also good: Frenzy or Multikill Clip)

As with all weapons, stats don’t matter too much for PvE. Therefore, we’ll recommend the same Barrel and Magazine as PvP. If reload speed becomes a problem, swap Ricochet Rounds for Flared Magwell. Moving to perks, Perpetual Motion is our favorite for the third column. For the fourth, you’ll want to look for Kinetic Tremors, Multikill Clip, or Frenzy.

Buzzard Adept farm: Is it worth it?

If you and your fireteam are up for a challenge, venturing into Grandmaster Nightfalls on the right week will grant you the Adept version of Buzzard. Compared to their standard variants, Adept weapons give more stats when Masterworked, have additional perks per column and can accept unique Adept mods.

Similar to the base version of Buzzard, you can purchase additional copies of the Adept variant from Zavala once it’s unlocked in Collections. These come at a steeper price: one Vanguard Engram, 50 Legendary Shards, 50,000 Glimmer, and ten Adept Nightfall Ciphers (available from Grandmaster Nightfalls).

PS: Remember that Grandmaster Nightfalls are only available during the latter part of the season.

Before you go…

Interested in more top tier Nightfall-excusive weapons? You might want to check out the Hung Jury SR4 too!

About The Author

Andrew Sideris
Andrew Sideris
With my over seven years of game knowledge, six months of writing experience for Blueberries.gg, and hundreds of Blueberries already guided through endgame content, I hope to allow newcomers to have the same great introduction I had all those years ago. You can find Andrew on Twitter.
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