Destiny 2 Malfeasance + Catalyst: How to get them

Malfeasance is a Taken-like kinetic hand cannon that received major nerfs on Season 22. The weapon looks good too, but more importantly, Malfeasance is now one of the best DPS hand cannons in Destiny 2.

In this guide, we will cover how to get Malfeasance, its Exotic Catalyst, and how good it currently is.

Name: Malfeasance

Type: Hand Cannon Archetype: Exotic

Ammo: Primary Element: Kinetic

Craftable: No Released: Season 4

Source: Exotic Quest Requires: Free-to-Play

How to get the Malfeasance Catalyst

The Malfeasance Catalyst can drop after completing any ritual activity, including Vanguard Ops, Crucible, or Gambit. In our case, it dropped after an Exotic Mission Rotator completion.  Note that as of Update 7.3.5, Comp matches have an increased Exotic Catalyst drop rate:

Competitive matches will also have an increased chance to drop Exotic weapon catalysts on victories.

How to get the Malfeasance Catalyst, Destiny 2

The catalyst adds a +20 range and Vorpal Weapon to Malfeasance. When paired with the Lucky Pants we mentioned before, Vorpal makes the gun especially good for boss damage.

Once acquired, you’ll need 700 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. However, simply using the weapon in day-to-day content will get the catalyst done in a reasonable timeframe.

Catalyst: Malfeasance

Ammo: Primary Element: Kinetic

Source: Strikes, Crucible, and Gambit Requires: Free-to-Play

How to Unlock: ► 700 kills Released: Season 21

How to get Malfeasance

To get Malfeasance, you need to complete the Darkness in the Light Exotic quest. Also known as the Malfeasance Exotic Quest, this quest starts after winning a Gambit match. Once you have the quest, there are the 7 steps for you to complete:

1. The Seething Heart: Speak to the Drifter at the Tower.
2. City of Secrets: Search for clues about the thief in the Dreaming City.
3. The Corrupted: Help the Drifter track the thief who stole from him. Complete the mission variant of the strike “The Corrupted.”
4. Depleted Weapon Core: Deliver the depleted weapon core you found at Callum’s grave to the Drifter.
5. Business as Usual: Deposit Motes. Dropped Motes subtract x2 score. Win Gambit matches. You will need around 500 motes.
6. Lights Out: Have an ally invader defeat four opposing Guardians in a single invasion three times, OR defeat four opposing Guardians as an invader. As an invader, defeat 25 opposing Guardians in Gambit.
7. Dark Weapon Core: Speak to the Drifter at the Tower.

The most annoying part of the quest is banking motes because it tracks progress among multiple Gambit matches. Make sure to deposit 10-15 motes as often as you can and stick with your team when being invaded.

Malfeasance Exotic, Destiny 2

How good is Malfeasance?

Malfeasance features the following Exotic Perks:

• Explosive Shadow: Shoot tainted slugs that burrow into combatants. Stacking enough slugs causes them all to explode, stunning surviving combatants. Strong against Unstoppable Champions
• Taken Predator: Bonus damage against Taken enemies and Gambit invaders

Since the hand cannon buffs from Season of the Witch (S22), Malfeasance has never been stronger. In Season 22, hand cannons deal 20% more damage against minors and 75% more damage against majors.

Explosive Shadow especially allows you to clear ads really quickly as if you had a gun with elemental perks like Incandescent or Destabilizing Rounds. This way, you won’t feel overwhelmed in ad-heavy content.

Overall, we consider Malfeasance S-tier for PvE and B-tier for PvP.

Best Malfeasance Build: Lucky Pants

Hunters can take advantage of recently reworked Lucky Pants exotic leg armor to make Malfeasance a damage powerhouse.

Armor	Class	Type	Requirements	Source	Released	Requires	Exotic Perk
Lucky Pants	Hunter	Legs	Free-to-Play	Exotic Engrams	Season 1	Free-to-Play	Exotic Perk: "When you ready a fully loaded Hand Cannon that deals kinetic damage or a damage type that matches your subclass energy type, each hit from that Hand Cannon increases the damage of the next shot for a short time against a combatant. Hand Cannons ready faster and are more accurate immediately after swapping to them."

You can use the armor with any subclass in case of Malfeasance and boost the gun’s DPS to 30-40k per shot. With the Malfeasance’s catalyst active and a couple of mods, the final DPS output can go even higher.

Before you go…

Are you looking for other top-tier Exotics worth chasing? We cover How to get Polaris Lance + Catalyst here.