Dead Man’s Tale: God Rolls, Catalyst & How to get it

Dead Man’s Tale is a 120 RPM Exotic Scout Rifle, one of few Exotics able to drop with random rolls. Available from the Presage Exotic Mission, Dead Man’s Tale is a unique weapon with several variants to suit your playstyle.

Today, we cover how powerful this Exotic Scout rifle is and tell you how to get both the weapon and the catalyst.

How to get Dead Man’s Tale

You can acquire the Dead Man’s Tale by completing the Presage Exotic mission on any difficulty setting. Presage is part of the Exotic Mission Rotator, and with three Missions in rotation, you can farm Presage every three weeks.

Art	Exotic Mission	Location	Power Level	Rewards	Requires
	Presage	Legends tab	1800	Loot Table	Beyond Light

Acquiring Dead Man’s Tale does require ownership of either the Beyond Light DLC or Season of the Chosen.

Dead Man’s Tale is now craftable

Now that Dead Man’s Tale doesn’t need to be purchased from Xûr anymore, it can be obtained for free when completing the Presage Exotic mission. Even better, Dead Man’s tale is craftable. As explained by Bungie:

• First completion of the mission on Normal or Legendary difficulty will award the Exotic Deepsight weapon associated with the mission. Extracting or dismantling this Deepsight weapon will grant the pattern.
• Each completion of the Normal or Legendary version of the Exotic mission will award an intrinsic upgrade that can be used when crafting the Exotic weapon.

How to get the Dead Man’s Tale Catalyst

The Dead Man’s Tale Catalyst can be acquired by completing Presage on Legendary difficulty.

The Catalyst grants the following Exotic Trait:

• Dark-Forged Trigger: Removes hipfire accuracy penalties and increases rate of fire from hip. Stacks of Cranial Spike increase hip rate of fire further.

Once acquired, you’ll need 800 weapon kills to unlock the Catalyst. Using typical farming methods such as Shuro Chi or the opening section of Grasp of Avarice will speed things along.

How good is Dead Man’s Tale

Dead Man’s Tale has been reworked to receive improved stats and an increased rate of fire, instead of the plain increased damage it used to offer. While this lowers the potency of Dead Man’s Tale, it remains a powerful option due to its high damage per shot and incredible range.

Dead Man’s Tale features a unique Exotic perk and archetype that set it apart:

• Cranial Spike: Chaining precision hits grants bonus target acquisition and range.
• Killing Wind: Final blows grant increased mobility, weapon range, and handling for a short duration.

Plus, as a craftable weapon, every trait can be fine-tuned and enhanced.

Dead Man’s Tale has been reworked to receive improved stats and an increased rate of fire instead of the plain increased damage it used to offer. While this lowers the potency of Dead Man’s Tale, it remains a powerful option due to its high damage per shot and incredible range. This versatile Scout Rifle currently stands out more in PvP than PvE. But even when considering its best perk combinations, there are currently better options for the same slot in PvE and PvP. Overall, we consider Dead Man’s Tale to be A-Tier for both PvE and PvP.

Dead Man’s Tale PvP God rolls

• Barrel: Fluted Barrel
• Magazine: Ricochet Rounds
• Trait: Moving Target (also good: Vorpal Weapon)
• Stock: Fitted Stock

PvP is where Dead Man’s Tale shines. Fluted Barrel and Ricochet Rounds is the best combination to keep the reticle sticky with added Range, shots accurate with Stability, and the extra Handling is great for fast swaps and usage from the hip.

Moving Target is the best possible trait with its added aim assist and movement speed, making you harder to hit in duels which also feeds into Dead Man’s Tale’s Exotic perk if you are accurate. Fitted Stock then finishes off this PvP roll giving Dead Man’s Tale the best recoil control, which is key when dueling your opponents.

Dead Man’s Tale PvE God rolls

• Barrel: Fluted Barrel
• Magazine: Ricochet Rounds
• Perk 1: Vorpal Weapon
• Stock: Composite Stock

Dead Man’s Tale has some solid base stats, so enhancing the full package works best in PvE. Fluted Barrel gives a large boost to Handling, giving a snappier feel while adding Stability to help keep your shots accurate.

Ricochet Rounds further pushes the Range and Stability, adding to its great advantage at distance.  Round this off with Vorpal Weapon increasing damage by 20% to higher-end enemies and vehicles. Composite Stock then adds an extra bonus of Stability and Handling.

Before you go…

Are you looking for other top-tier Exotics with random rolls worth chasing? We cover the top Hawkmoon God Rolls here.