My first failed attempt at the Strange Terrain nightfall was over 4 years ago when Destiny 2 first launched. That initial foray went poorly to say the least – our fireteam wiped over and over, struggling to clear even basic ads. After hitting the boss room, the deafening stomps of Nokris crushed our confidence and dreams of getting the icy blue Braytech Osprey rocket launcher to drop. I didn‘t understand it then, but that seemingly unassuming void launcher would become my obsession – an avalanche of explosive potential that called to me like a Siren‘s song through years of battle on Mars.
Over a hundred failed runs later, the Osprey finally blessed me with its presence. As a Guardian forged in the fires of Regicide and Wrath of the Machine raids, I knew powerful gear when I held it. Yet only through relentless testing against every boss and combat puzzle Destiny could conjure was I able to fully unwrap the Osprey‘s potential. Now after untold hours perfecting my craft and thousands of enemies extinguished under donkey-kicking volleys, I stand convinced this oft overlooked rocket sits firmly in the pantheon of all-time legendary heavies.
Today I pass my hard won knowledge to you. Whether you face the unfathomable power of resurrected Hive gods or struggle against overwhelming hordes in Legend difficulty, the Braytech Osprey stands ready to deliver you from evil. This is the one rocket to rule them all – the key to unleashing devastation inside and out of our solar system.
Decoding the Power Within – The Osprey‘s Potent Perk Pool
Many young lights simply chase the flavor of the month, slotting whatever Hakke or Veist weapon the YouTubers tell them is "best in class." adopt popular weapons. Special and heavy slots overflow with trendy options like Funnelweb, Taipan, and Stormchaser without a second thought. The herd mentality claims those offer the biggest damage numbers, but fail to consider real world difficulty of use. Certainly with frame perfect timing and perfect aim those fare well enough. But the Osprey laughs at such limitations, ready to dish oppressive pain without sweat or tears.
Let‘s examine why:
Explosive Light – Collecting those hard earned Orbs of Power builds a damage stack, with max potential after grabbing 5 or more. At x5, your next rocket unleashes an earth-shattering 25% bonus explosiveness. But the perk hides even more potential many miss – stacking that alongside a 10% buff from Argent Ordnance and weapons-grade Well of Radiance for another 25%, we reach a volcanic 60% damage multiplier. Show me another legendary rocket that offers that kind of output!
Tracking Module – Perhaps the most undervalued perk here, tracking gives your ordinance a relentless hunger for enemy flesh otherwise unmatched in the legendary archetype. While exotics like Truth or Eyes of Tomorrow have built-in tracking, no other purple competitor can acquire this level of heat-seeking dominance. Never worry about a boss teleporting away, adds strafing your volley, or Champions barricading in time. The Osprey ALWAYS delivers maximum pain, minimizing weapon handling skill required.
Envious Assassin – Rocket launchers too often rely on slow and bulky reload speeds. Envious Assassin laughs at such concerns, automatically reloading up to half the magazine after a kill depending on how many rockets connect. Savvy builders enhance this further with reload buffs from gloves, subclasses, and more to keep tubes stuffed through extended sieges. Paired with a large 8 round magazine, uptime soars.
Outside of its core trio of perks, various secondary traits in columns 3 and 4 boost lethality further. Reload focused traits like Rapid Hit reward precise shots on tougher enemies, quickly maxing reload speed after a few solid hits. One-Two Punch conspirators FOMOing about Peregrine Greaves builds can reclaim their power fantasy with the Osprey variant here too. More selfless players gift their fireteam overflowing magazines thanks to the surplus trait. But above all, damage reigns supreme. My favored god roll with Lasting Impressions frequently breaks 6 digit damage on Platinum Champions – enough overkill to make even Oryx blush. When Explosive Light ignites that payload, few enemies withstand the impending storm.
But raw damage only tells half the story. Ease of use and flexibility separate the Osprey wheat from chaff like Hothead or Royal Entry. Delve into the details with me.
By the Numbers – Nuanced Rocket Launcher Breakdowns
Popularity doesn’t equate to proficiency or practicality as the Hothead and Palmyra rocket launchers showcase. On paper, these craftable Hakke launchers tempt many into grinding god rolls promising big damage. But theoretical potential means nothing to a fireteam trapped in the Abyss of Despair, overwhelmed by bloodthirsty Hive. Only salvo after crushing salvo of the Osprey can shatter that darkness. Let’s break down the numbers:
Raw Damage Potential (per rocket)
| Launcher | Standard Shot | Buffed Shot | Situational Peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Braytech Osprey | 115,000 | 184,000 | 230,000 (Explosive Light x5 + Argent Ordnance) |
| Hothead | 128,000 | 179,200 | 230,000 (Argent Ordnance) |
| Palmyra-B | 110,000 | 154,000 | 220,000 (Argent Ordnance) |
Verdict: Near identical damage thresholds. The Osprey competes handily in peak damage.
Ease of Use
| Launcher | Tracking | Reload Speed | Handling | Aim Assist | Mag Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braytech Osprey | ✅ | 65 | 47 | 76 | 8 |
| Hothead | ❌ | 73 (+9) | 73 (+26) | 63 (-13) | 2 or 6 |
| Palmyra-B | ❌ | 59 (-6) | 63 (+16) | 63 (-13) | 6 |
Verdict: No competition. While middle column perks like Impulse Amplifier can aid aim, intrinsic tracking gives the Osprey heat-seeking dominance. Paired with a generous magazine, ease of use is peerless.
Damage Uptime
- Thanks to Envious Assassin constantly reloading rockets after kills, the Osprey minimized downtime. Reload buffing support abilities accelerate this further
- Manual reload focused options like Hothead require perfect timing of Lunafaction Rifts and Rally Barricades. The margin for error is tight across extended damage phases, putting excess strain on your fireteam.
The numbers tell the tale clearly enough, but seeing is believing. Against mobile raid bosses like Rhulk, aim assist and tracking make landing precision volleys elementary. And the built-in flinch from explosive rounds keeps even the most mobile bosses stabilized for consecutive hits. Between an 8 round magazine and Envious Assassin continually topping off rounds, uptime soars ever higher. While craftable competitors spend precious seconds scrambling for ammo, the Osprey holder revels in endless ordinance.
Combine ease of use with the Osprey‘s versatile legendaries perk pool instead of trait combos locked by Deepsight Resonance patterns, and the choice becomes clear. Let‘s explore what oppressive combinations await within the Osprey‘s potential.
PvE God Roll – Unleashing Apocalyptic Damage
After thousands of collective hours theorycrafting, collaborating with talented builders like Mercules and Destiny Massive Breakdowns, and repeatedly merc‘ing every boss Bungie could offer…a consensus Osprey god roll emerged:
Quick Launch – trades a bit of blast radius for vastly improved handling and velocity. Having your rockets arrive faster while swapping/aiming quicker lets you dish pain faster.
Tracking Module – No explanations needed. Tracking speaks for itself, removing the headache of leading unpredictable targets.
Explosive Light – Again, stacking volatile blast damage through orb collection rewards clever play, pumping peak damage higher.
Lasting Impression – The premier boss crushing damage perk in Destiny 2. Every rocket becomes a tactical nuke, dealing nearly 50% of its total damage a full second after impact. With the Osprey, no other legendary rocket can chain these explosions so easily.
But the fun doesn‘t stop there. Let‘s fully build this theoretical monster out:
The key to maximizing overall damage lies in the Season 19 seasonal artifact, specifically the seasonal mods:
Argent Ordnance (4 mod cost) – Stacks protective Argent Energy into your rocket launcher based on kills and multi kills. At max stacks, your next rocket deals +10% damage.
Explosive Light (4 mod cost) – Bonuses your Explosive Light damage buff (+25% damage at max stacks).
Combine these with the proven god roll above, and your today‘s maximum theoretical damage sits at an awe inspiring 184,000+. For Guardians properly trained to leverage Empowering Rifts, Well of Radiance, and Divinity, your volleys will permanently wipe bosses from recorded history. Hyperbole aside, this simplified loadout puts raid boss phases on farm status, no stress or sweat:
Weapon 1: Braytech Osprey God Roll
Weapon 2: Arbalest (barrier champion counter)
Weapon 3: Funnelweb (Seraph Rounds + Demolitionist. Grenades fuel Argent Ordnance stacks).
Armor: Stack Rocket Launcher Ammo mods + Rocket Launcher Holster mod for quick draw speed
Subclass: Solar (Well of Radiance). Drop Well and Empowering Rift for bosses.
With perfectly timed shots, your theoretical peak DPS clocks in at a maximum potential of 230,000! Of course perfect min-maxing isn‘t realistic for all. But that‘s the true beauty of the Osprey. Inexpert users firing from the hip achieve fantastic damage too thanks to intrinsic tracking. 80-90k buffed crits will outpace even "optimized" Hothead or Palmyra setups.
But the Osprey extends beyond deleting bosses…Add clear potential shines just as bright.
Ad Clear Innovation – Breaking the Rocket Launcher Mold
Blasting back Ogre‘s and Knights leaves most Guardians satisfied, but why stop there? Legendary rockets often lack the versatility to handle both precision single target crits AND mow down swaths of minor enemies. The Osprey cares little for such limitations. By tailoring perks to enhance reload speed, magazine size, and blast radius – your favorite rocket sheds its hyper focus on bosses and becomes an add clear innovator.
My current build for general PvE plows through entire battlegrounds without firing a primary weapon:
Hard Launch – trading velocity for maximum blast radius turns rockets into localized nukes
Tracking Module -set it and forget it. Tracking ensures no enemy survives
Envious Assassin – feeding multikills to auto-reload keeps tubes full
Frenzy – accelerating reload alongside incremental blast radius buffs after a kill feed into epic ad clear potential
Pair the above with a Demolitionist Funnelweb feeding endless grenade energy toward Argent Ordnance x5 procs. Then defeat an enemy to overload magazines thanks to Surplus. In battlegrounds and altar assaults, this loadout achieves the fantasy that makes Destiny so unique…you become an immutable engine of destruction laying waste to alien hordes. Primary weapons gather dust as the visual and auditory onslaught whirls on without pause. While fun, such unending chaos does limit practicality in late game content. But for basic core activities, embracing this build brings back that nostalgic D1 "let loose and wreck stuff" power trip many pine for. If you grew tired of precision weapons constantly proccing perks, the Osprey opens new doors of explosive excitement.
Now that we covered both ace precision damage and reckless add clearing potential, some parting thoughts and recommendations. Even after thousands of hours of study, the Osprey occasionally reveals new secrets that shock and surprise me. Surely much remains undiscovered by even hardcore enthusiasts. If you unlocked that wisdom, please share it with the community! Now let‘s deliver some parting recommendations.
Final Verdict – Critical Advice from an Osprey Aficionado
Look, Witherhoard and Gjallarhorn hog the spotlight asDestiny 2‘s assumed explosive experts. Their gimmicks and ease of use appeal to the masses for good reason. But such exotic limitations leave legendary rockets gathering dust, as players sleep on polished purple options with nearly equivalent DPS.
The Braytech Osprey stands ready to claim the legendary rocket throne – no hoops to jump through or quests demanding completion. Instead, repeatedly brave the icy caverns of Mars, prove yourself before Nokris and Xol, and seize the rewards you earned.
Here is concise guidance for all Osprey hopefuls:
PvE God Roll Hunting
Prioritize these traits in each column:
-
Quick Launch
-
Tracking Module
-
Explosive Light
-
Lasting Impression
Farm when Strange Terrain is the weekly Nightfall until this beauty drops. Even slightly suboptimal rolls beat most competing legendary offerings though, so don‘t drive yourself crazy resetting your Infamy if needed rolls don‘t appear quickly.
Boss Strategies
Lean into the Osprey‘s intrinsic tracking and buff uptime advantage against raid bosses. Sustained precision hits quickly out damage finicky options like Stormchaser, Deliverance, or Taipan that rely on divinity crit bubbles.
Utilize Overload grenades from your primary Funnelweb to unlock Argent Ordnance stacks for periodic damage spikes
Well of Radiance and Empowering Rift enable easy 2 phases on most raid bosses (Templar, Warpriest, Golgoroth, Sanctified Mind, etc)
Artifact Mods
Prioritize the Explosive Light and Argent Ordnance seasonal mods each season. Their low energy costs and damage buffs provide the highest return on investment of all heavy focused mods.
Rocket Launcher Holster greatly improves quality of life and uptime.
As always Rocket Launcher Scavenger, Reserves, Ammo Finder, etc bolster the heavy brick economy.
In closing, hopefully you now grasp the full capabilities that set the Osprey apart from all legendary newcomers. May your chambers overflow with ordinance and no Champions escape the relentless hunger within these tubes! This is my last will and testimony – etch the Osprey‘s glory into Destiny legend.
Now go unleash untold pain! I‘ll be watching your fireworks with glee.