The Helmsman is definitely worth considering in both PvE and PvP if you like how it feels, but is sadly outclassed at the pinnacle of PvE content due to its low DPS. Still, definitely worth keeping a roll of.
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How good is The Helmsman
(The Helmsman is our first and only legendary high-impact sniper rifle, which makes it quite unique in that we’re also evaluating the whole archetype here.)
In PvE, The Helmsman is pretty serviceable all around. It has pretty high damage per shot, as well as an incredible ammo economy. With this, its total damage is decent enough that it can be used for damage in some longer boss phases (any phase longer than 28seconds, in which a rapid-fire or Conspiracy Honed would run out of ammo), but when considering other snipers’ perk pools it feels like more trouble than it’s worth, with its incredibly low multi-shot DPS meaning that it’ll take far more phases to kill those bosses.
It does have a pretty decent neutral game, though, rewarding good aim with decent major-killing potential and also being pretty good as a mechanics sniper (such as Oracles in Vault of Glass) thanks to its immense ammo reserves. But, all in all, PvE players looking for the best option might still want a rapid-fire instead due to its versatility and vastly superior perk pool.
In PvP, this weapon feels incredible; it has Snapshot Sights and Opening Shot, meaning that you can use this to quickscope incredibly effectively, if you can master its unruly nature. It feels like a skill weapon, and is terrifying in the right hands. But it’s an acquired taste, for sure. The Helmsman is A-Tier for PvE and S-tier for PvP.
Best alternatives:
 | Conspiracy Honed | Sniper Rifle |  Special |  Stasis | Equilibrium Dungeon | S29 - Updated |
 | Praedyth's Revenge | Sniper Rifle | Special |  Kinetic | Vault of Glass Raid | S29 - Updated |
 | Rapid Growth | Sniper Rifle | Special |  Arc | Solstice Engram | S29 - New |
The Helmsman Perks and God Rolls
The Helmsman Arc Sniper Rifle can roll with the following perks:
- Perk 1: No Distractions, Light Touch, Snapshot Sights, Lone Wolf, Explosive Payload, Discord.
- Perk 2: Box Breathing, Gear Shift, Opening Shot, Closing Time, Vorpal Weapon, Elemental Honing.
- Origin Trait: Roar of Battle, Field Tested, Accelerated Assault.
The Helmsman God Rolls, Destiny 2
The Helmsman PvE god roll
| PvE Roll: All-Around | |
|---|---|
| Barrel | Fluted Barrel |
| Magazine | Flared Magwell |
| Perk 1 | Explosive Payload |
| Perk 2 | Elemental Honing |
| Masterwork | Stability |
| Origin Trait | Accelerated Assault |
The Helmsman is so unruly that we’re essentially trying to tame it here to make it easier to handle. With this, we recommend Fluted Barrel and Flared Magwell to improve the Handling and Stability (and also give a nice boost to its reload speed).
The perks here are also quite simple; Explosive Payload is passive splash as well as being the only real PvE perk in the first column that’s relevant to this gun, with Discord being really difficult to utilise with the lengthy reload.
In the second column, Elemental Honing is the only real damage perk. Gear Shift is mediocre when it comes to real-world DPS, and Elemental Honing is generally going to be active more of the time passively. You can utilise Gear Shift, but it’s quite difficult to make use of with this archetype.
The Helmsman PvP god roll
| PvP Roll: All-Around | |
|---|---|
| Barrel | Fluted Barrel |
| Magazine | Steady Rounds |
| Perk 1 | Snapshot Sights |
| Perk 2 | Opening Shot (also good: Closing Time) |
| Masterwork | Handling |
| Origin Trait | Roar of Battle |
The barrel and magazine are similar here to the PvE roll, but with less ammo in PvP we’re mainly looking to make every shot count. So, Fluted Barrel is key, and then Steady Rounds just gives us more stability to work with.
In the first perk column, Snapshot Sights is simply essential. There’s also Lone Wolf that you could consider, but the difference that Snapshot Sights makes to PvPing with this gun is so important to utilizing it in the Crucible.
The second perk column has a couple of choices. The mix of Snapshot Sights and Opening Shot is a lethal combo to ensure that you get the most accuracy and aim assist when you use it, but Closing Time works very similarly. With this, we believe that Opening Shot is the superior of the two, but Closing Time also feels decent to use.
How to get The Helmsman
The Helmsman can drop by participating in the Crucible Ops playlist. You can also attune to it to increase your chances of obtaining it when farming the playlist. For maximum efficiency, keep an eye on the daily rotating bonuses. These could make farming for it particularly efficient on specific days. We cover all Crucible Ops weapons here.
Where to get The Helmsman, Destiny 2
Before you go
Interested in more top-tier Crucible weapons? You should definitely check out these Rose God Rolls.
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