This guide will help you keep track of all the new shiny loot and will focus on the most sought-after items in the entire game: Exotics.
If you’re interested in Exotics that are slightly older, our Exotics Tier list covers every single Exotic weapon available in Destiny 2
The Witch Queen Exotic weapons
These are all the new Exotic weapons released with The Witch Queen DLC and Season 16 on February 22, 2022:
| Weapon | Type | Archetype | Ammo | Element | Requirements | Available? | Rank | Source | Obtainable? | Tier rank | Source ❘ DLC | Final Verdict | Released | Perks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Osteo Striga | Submachine Gun | Exotic | Primary | Kinetic | The Witch Queen | Yes | S › Best | Deluxe Edition |  | Best ❘ S Excels in: PVE + PVP | Deluxe Edition The Witch Queen | Slot:  Kinetic | Ammo:  SpecialExotic Perk: "Fires a stream of sentient, toxic projectiles that track the targeted enemy. Landing a final blow or multiple precision hits triggers a burst that poisons nearby targets." ► Feeling extremely nice to use in both PVE and PVP, Osteo Striga immediately became a lot of players' favorite exotic. Its poison-spreading effect makes it one of the best ad clear primaries in PVE, and its enemy-tracking bullets make it an easy-to-use option in PVP. Plus, its catalyst is S-tier. What's not to love? | Season 16 | Slot: Kinetic | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "Fires a stream of sentient, toxic projectiles that track the targeted enemy. Landing a final blow or multiple precision hits triggers a burst that poisons nearby targets." |
 Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Exotic | Special | Void | Season 16 | Yes | A › Strong | Exotic Quest | | Strong ❘ A Excels in: PVE | Exotic Quest Season 16 | Slot:  Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "One-shot handheld Grenade Launcher. Projectiles release a fan of three energy waves on contact with the ground. You can change damage type, cycling between Solar, Arc, and Void." ► The best of the three element-swapping exotics, Dead Messenger provides great utility in PVE and is very strong in PVP. Additionally, because it can fire Void, Arc, and Solar, this wave frame might become even stronger with the rest of the Light 3.0 changes. | Season 16 | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "One-shot handheld Grenade Launcher. Projectiles release a fan of three energy waves on contact with the ground. You can change damage type, cycling between Solar, Arc, and Void." |
 Parasite | Grenade Launcher | Exotic | Heavy | Solar | The Witch Queen | Yes | A › Strong | Exotic Quest | | Strong ❘ A Excels in: PVE | Exotic Quest The Witch Queen | Slot:  Heavy | Ammo:  HeavyExotic Perk: "Ffires Hive worms which explode on impact. The size and damage of the explosion scales with the number of enemies you've defeated just before firing this weapon. Taking damage from your own worm projectile detonation empowers your weapons for a short time." ► Arguably the most unique gun in the game, Parasite fires live explosive worms instead of regular grenades. If you can get lots of Worm's Hunger stacks, this weapon can do some insane damage. Its unmatched burst damage and extremely high fun factor combine to make Parasite an extremely strong option in PVE. | Season 16 | Slot: Heavy | Ammo: HeavyExotic Perk: "Ffires Hive worms which explode on impact. The size and damage of the explosion scales with the number of enemies you've defeated just before firing this weapon. Taking damage from your own worm projectile detonation empowers your weapons for a short time." |
 Collective Obligation | Pulse Rifle | Exotic | Primary | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | B › Average | Vow of the Disciple Raid | | Average ❘ B Excels in: PVE + PVP | Vow of the Disciple Raid The Witch Queen | Slot: Energy | Ammo: PrimaryExotic Perk: "This weapon leeches Void debuffs when damaging targets that are suppressed, weakened, or volatile. Once charged, damage from this weapon applies the same Void debuffs that were leeched. Weapon automatically reloads when you gain Devour, a Void overshield, or become invisible" ► With the ability to debuff everything in sight, Collective Obligation can shine as no other weapon can. That being said, you're almost required to create a build with it to make it worth your exotic slot. While this weapon has amazing potential, having to work to make your exotic feel "exotic" isn't great. | Season 16 | Slot: Energy | Ammo: PrimaryExotic Perk: "This weapon leeches Void debuffs when damaging targets that are suppressed, weakened, or volatile. Once charged, damage from this weapon applies the same Void debuffs that were leeched. Weapon automatically reloads when you gain Devour, a Void overshield, or become invisible" |
 Grand Overture | Machine Gun | Exotic | Heavy | Arc | Free-to-Play | Yes | B › Average | Season Pass | | Average ❘ B Excels in: PVE | Season Pass Free-to-Play | Slot:  Heavy | Ammo: HeavyExotic Perk: "Heavy slug launcher that charges, then fires full auto while the trigger is held. Land hits with the slug launcher to load missiles and then fire to launch all missiles in a single volley." ► Grand Overture is actually quite a strong option when compared to other machine guns. For example, it has one of the best DPS outputs for a machine gun right now. However, it can't be considered top-tier as it lacks when it comes to ad clear, which is what machine guns are used for right now. | Season 16 | Slot: Heavy | Ammo: HeavyExotic Perk: "Heavy slug launcher that charges, then fires full auto while the trigger is held. Land hits with the slug launcher to load missiles and then fire to launch all missiles in a single volley." |
 Edge of Concurrence | Glaive | Exotic | Special | Arc | The Witch Queen | Yes | B › Average | Exotic Quest | | Average ❘ B | Exotic Quest The Witch Queen | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot track targets across the ground and unleash chain lightning on impact." ► Edge of Concurrence had an extremely disappointing debut. Its chain-lighting was mediocre and was barely able to keep up with Trinity Ghoul, which only requires primary ammo and is much easier to use. Edge of Concurrence is getting a major buff soon, though. We'll have to see how far it can take it... | Season 16 | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot track targets across the ground and unleash chain lightning on impact." |
 Edge of Action | Glaive | Exotic | Special | Void | The Witch Queen | Yes | C › Weak | Exotic Quest | | Weak ❘ C | Exotic Quest The Witch Queen | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot deploy a protective shield on impact.." ► While placing a Void bubble anywhere on-demand sounds great on paper, Edge of Action falls flat because of its activation method. When not actively placing down or using a bubble, it just feels like a regular glaive; and with how glaives feel right now, that isn't a good thing. | Season 16 | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot deploy a protective shield on impact.." |
 Edge of Intent | Glaive | Exotic | Special | Solar | The Witch Queen | Yes | C › Weak | Exotic Quest | | Weak ❘ C | Exotic Quest The Witch Queen | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot deploy a healing turret on impact." ► Warlocks have the best exotic glaive out of the three, but that isn't saying much. The short duration of the healing turret and non-exotic feeling base functionality of the weapon makes Edge of Intent feel terrible to use. | Season 16 | Slot: Energy | Ammo: SpecialExotic Perk: "When weapon energy is full, consume it before firing to make your next shot deploy a healing turret on impact." |
New (and reintroduced) Catalysts
With the Witch Queen, a grand total of 7 catalysts were introduced to the game. 2 of them are brand new (Grand Ouverture’s and Dark Messenger’s) and the remaining 5 are older Catalysts that were removed and put into the Destiny Content Vault:
| Name | Type | Slot | Catalyst Rank | Catalyst Source | Available? | Requirements | Catalyst | Tier | Where to find it | How to unlock it | Catalyst effect | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Overture | Machine Gun | Heavy | Ongoing | Quest | Yes | The Witch Queen |  Grand Overture | Machine Gun | Ongoing... | Complete Banshee-44's quest The Witch Queen | ► Get 200 Solar kills, 200 Void kills, 200 Arc kills | ► Adds Turnabout perk: Using this weapon to break the shield of a combatant or a Guardian using their Super will grant you an overshield.. | Season 16 |
| Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Energy | Ongoing | Quest | Yes | The Witch Queen |  Dead Messenger | Grenade Launcher | Ongoing... | Complete Vox Obscura quest on Hard mode The Witch Queen | ► Get 400 kills | ► Missile explosions will blind combatants. Those defeated by missile impacts then explode. | Season 16 |
| Le Monarque | Combat Bow | Energy | Ongoing | Playlist Activity completions | No | Forsaken Pack |  Le Monarque | Combat Bow | Ongoing... | Completions of Playlist activities  Forsaken Pack | ► Get 700 kills | ► Adds Unrelenting perk: Rapidly defeating targets triggers health regeneration. Guardians and powerful combatants count as more than one kill. | Season 16 |
| The Fourth Horseman | Shotgun | Energy | A › Strong | Playlist Activity completions | Yes | Shadowkeep |  The Fourth Horseman | Shotgun | Strong ❘ A | Completions of Playlist activities  Shadowkeep | ► Get 400 kills | ► Adds And its name was Death perk: Adds an additional round to the magazine and increases reload speed by +40. | Season 16 |
| Hawkmoon | Hand Cannon | Kinetic | A › Strong | Playlist Activity completions | Yes | Free-to-Play |  Hawkmoon | Hand Cannon | Strong ❘ A | Completions of Playlist activities Free-to-Play | ► Get 700 kills | ► Adds the Hunter's Trance perk: Increases magazine size to 9. Also increases handling, reload speed, and range based on the number of Paracausal Charge stacks. | Season 16 |
| Outbreak Perfected | Pulse Rifle | Kinetic | A › Strong | Playlist Activity completions | Yes | Forsaken Pack |  Outbreak Perfected | Pulse Rifle | Strong ❘ A | Completions of Playlist activities Forsaken Pack | ► Get 500 precision kills | ► Adds Disease Vector perk: Deal additional nanite damage. | Season 16 |
| Whisper of the Worm | Sniper Rifle | Heavy | A › Strong | Playlist Activity completions | Yes | Free-to-Play |  Whisper of the Worm | Sniper Rifle | Strong ❘ A | Completions of Playlist activities Free-to-Play | ► TBC | ► Adds Whispered Breathing perk: Aiming down the scope for 3 seconds increases range and precision damage while the weapon scope remains zoomed. | Season 16 |
If you’re interested in more catalysts, this list features every Exotic Catalyst available in Destiny 2 (and tells you how to find them, unlock them, and what they do).
New Exotic armor
Every new season comes, in general, with a new piece of Exotic armor for each class. Full expansions tend to include 2 pieces of armor per class and that was exactly the case with The Witch Queen release.
| Armor | Class | Type | Requirements | Source | Released | Requires | Exotic Perk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Loreley Splendor Helm | Titan | Helm | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "When you have Sun Warrior, your Sunspots heal you. When you are critically wounded, create a Sunspot at your location." |
 Hoarfrost-Z | Titan | Chest | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "When using the Stasis subclass, your Barricade becomes a wall of Stasis crystals that slows nearby targets when created. Standing behind this barricade will grant you and your allies increased weapon reload speed, stability, and range." |
 Blight Ranger | Hunter | Helm | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "Attacks you redirect with your Arc Staff deal massively increased damage and generate Orbs of Power for your allies." |
 Renewal Grasps | Hunter | Arms | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "Your Duskfield grenades have a much larger effect radius. Allies inside the Duskfield take reduced damage and targets inside the area deal reduced damage." |
 Osmiomancy Gloves | Warlock | Arms | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "Your Coldsnap grenades have an additional charge that recharges quicker on direct impact. The seeker spawned from Coldsnap grenades travels further." |
 Secant Filaments | Warlock | Legs | The Witch Queen | Lost Sectors | Season 16 | The Witch Queen | Exotic Perk: "Casting an empowering rift will grant you Devour. Damage dealt by you and your allies from within your empowering rift will disrupt combatants." |
This section covers every piece of new Exotic armor released with The Witch Queen and Season 16 (the beginning of Year 5 of Destiny 2). Be aware that, unlike older Exotics, these can only be acquired when completing Legend and Master Lost Sectors solo.
How to get the new Exotics in Destiny 2
There are several ways to find Exotic weapons in Destiny 2. Some can be indefinitely farmed while others are capped per season. This guide covers every single method to acquire Exotics in Destiny 2, old and new.
When it comes to finding the new Exotics, though, the methods to acquire them are much more limited, but at least they are direct and straightforward:
1. Completing Exotic quests
Quest Exotics: The most iconic exotics are often tied to Exotic quests of varying degrees of difficulty and length. Exotic quests are, for the most part, long and complicated, each deserving a good tutorial.
To get you started, you can head over to our comprehensive guide featuring every Destiny 2 exotic quest still available (including video guides).
2. Buying Exotics at The Monument to Lost Lights
The Monument to Lost Lights (aka, the “Exotics Kiosk”) is a fairly new method to acquire Exotics weapons that were previously connected to expired Season Passes and Exotic quests that are no longer available in-game. Either way, the Monument to Lost Lights has all of those exotics for sale.
You can read all about it in our Monument to Lost Lights guide, including the cost to acquire each Exotic and a complete tier list to help you decide what to get next.
The Monument to Lost Lights
3. Claiming Exotics from the Season Pass
The easier Exotics available to you can be found in the Season Pass. Both the Paid and Free tracks of the Season Pass offer a handful of Exotic engrams. All you need do is earn the XP to unlock them before the season is over.
4. Completing Raids and Dungeons
A select handful of exotics can only drop from raid bosses or dungeons. The most recent examples are the Vex Mythoclast, which can only drop from the Vault of Glass raid, and Gjallarhorn, which drops from the Grasp of Avarice dungeon.
The Vault of Glass: Destiny 2’s newest raid
You can visit this guide for a detailed look at every loot table in the game, including raids, dungeons, Trials of Osiris and more.
Your turn
You now know everything there is to know about the latest and greatest Exotics in the game and how to best find them. We will keep these lists updated with every new Season and DLC so make sure you bookmark this page!
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