Destiny 2 Bait and Switch: Weapons and Perk guide

Initially written off as a passable perk, Bait and Switch went from overlooked to overpowered in a single patch. Plus, it is no longer exclusive to Vow of the Disciple weapons and can now roll on various other weapons. 

This guide covers the weapons that can roll with Bait and Switch, what the perk does, and how to build around it to make it even more powerful. 

Updated as of Episode 1: Echoes.

Bait and Switch weapons in Destiny 2

Bait and Switch can only roll on a few select weapons, meaning it’s relatively exclusive for now. Here is a list of all of the weapons available that can roll with Bait and Switch:

Art	Name	Type	Ammo	Element	Source	Top Perk?
	Apex Predator	Rocket Launcher	Heavy	Solar	Last Wish Raid	Incandescent,Explosive Light,Reconstruction,Bait and Switch
	Cataclysmic	Linear Fusion Rifle	Heavy	Solar	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Cataphract GL3	Grenade Launcher	Heavy	Strand	Trials of Osiris	Bait and Switch
	Cold Comfort	Rocket Launcher	Heavy	Stasis	Ghost of the Deep Dungeon	Explosive Light,Bait and Switch
	Critical Anomaly	Sniper Rifle	Special	Stasis	Salvation's Edge Raid	Chaos Reshaped,Bait and Switch
	Crowning Duologue	Rocket Launcher	Heavy	Strand	Event: Solstice	Bait and Switch
	Deliverance	Fusion Rifle	Special	Stasis	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Edge Transit	Grenade Launcher	Heavy	Void	Onslaught Activity	Bait and Switch
	Falling Guillotine (Brave)	Sword	Heavy	Void	Onslaught Activity	Bait and Switch
	False Idols	Sword	Heavy	Solar	The Pale Heart	Incandescent,Bait and Switch
	Forbearance (Brave)	Grenade Launcher	Special	Arc	Onslaught Activity	Bait and Switch
	Forbearance	Grenade Launcher	Special	Arc	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Insidious	Pulse Rifle	Primary	Arc	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Line in the Sand	Linear Fusion Rifle	Heavy	Arc	Dawn Engrams	Voltshot,Bait and Switch
	Lubrae's Ruin	Glaive	Special	Solar	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Pro Memoria	Machine Gun	Heavy	Strand	The Pale Heart	Bait and Switch
	Scintillation	Linear Fusion Rifle	Heavy	Strand	Nightfall: The Ordeals	Bait and Switch
	Song of Ir Yût	Machine Gun	Heavy	Arc	Crota's End Raid	Voltshot,Sword Logic,Reconstruction,Bait and Switch
	Submission	Submachine Gun	Primary	Kinetic	Vow of the Disciple Raid	Bait and Switch
	Summun Bonun	Sword	Heavy	Arc	Salvation's Edge Raid	Chaos Reshaped,Bait and Switch
	The Supremacy	Sniper Rifle	Special	Kinetic	Last Wish Raid	Kinetic Tremors,Bait and Switch
	The Slammer	Sword	Heavy	Stasis	Nightfall: The Ordeals	Bait and Switch
	Tusk of the Boar	Grenade Launcher	Special	Strand	Iron Banner	Bait and Switch
	Undercurrent	Grenade Launcher	Special	Arc	Nightfall: The Ordeals	Voltshot,Bait and Switch
	Wild Style	Grenade Launcher	Special	Solar	Nightfall: The Ordeals	Incandescent,Bait and Switch

Bait and Switch on Vow of the Disciple weapons, Destiny 2

Bait and Switch and Enhanced Bait and Switch: Facts & Figures

The official perk description, surprisingly, is very clear on the mechanics of Bait and Switch:

Deal damage with all equipped weapons within a short time to give this weapon a damage boost.

As per usual, Bungie doesn’t give us the specifics of what a “short time” constitutes, but thanks to community testing, we know the following:

• Dealing damage with any weapon starts a hidden 7 second timer.
• Once you deal damage with all three weapons within that window, a 10 second timer starts.
• This timer starts as soon as the third weapon lands a hit, not when you swap back to the weapon with Bait and Switch.
• The perk buffs damage by 35% for the entire duration.
• Perk cannot be refreshed until the timer fully expires.

Pretty simple, right? Land hits with all three weapons, and a clean 35% damage buff is yours. What’s more is that the hits do not need to be all on the same enemy, so you can prep with the first two weapons on another enemy, then swap back to the main enemy and start the buff there. But more on that in the next section.

It is important to note that the perk activates the moment the third weapon lands its hit. This third weapon, in theory, should always be the weapon Bait and Switch is on.

Like most enhanced perks, the enhanced version of this perk doesn’t augment this significantly, only offering a measly 1-second addition to the buff timer.

Taking full advantage of Bait and Switch

Bait and Switch is best utilized against bosses in Raids and Dungeons. While it can be effective against champions in some situations, higher-level content reduces the stun timer, meaning a smaller window in which to use it to its full capacity.

This perk is a Heavy-weapon and DPS-focused perk, plain and simple. While it rolls on all three types of weapons, wasting limited ammo to activate the perk on subpar DPS weapons is not advised, though I can imagine some might find a niche application. 

Bait and Switch on Apex Predator, Destiny 2

Given the nature of the perk, Bait and Switch is most effective when paired with weapons that swap quickly and that do some form of damage over time. Naturally, that makes Witherhoard your best friend, especially if you have completed the catalyst, which boosts its handling by a tremendous amount. For your energy weapon, anything works well so long as it has high handling.

Finally, this perk synergizes well with reload or magazine-augmenting perks, such as Fourth Time’s the Charm, Reconstruction, and Envious Assassin. This allows you to make the most out of the buff while reducing reload downtime.

Before you go…

As always, we encourage you to take this perk a step further and make it your own! And just as Bait and Switch is a top-tier Arc perk, definitely check out Voltshot, another top-tier perk exclusive to Arc weapons.