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The Messenger god roll - Destiny 2

Discover what perks you should be looking for on a god roll of The Messenger in Destiny 2.

Sam Chandler

March 3, 2021 11:30 PM

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The Messenger is a great Trials of Osiris Pulse Rifle in Destiny 2 that has gotten more appealing with a new line of perks. Taking the time to play Trials to farm a decent roll should be on your to-do list, especially if you want to compete at a higher level in Crucible. While there are some great perks that work well as a PVP god roll, The Messenger might not be one you use that much in PVE activities.

The Messenger god roll

The Messenger is a 340 RPM Pulse Rifle, which places it in the same archetype of Redrix’s Claymore. This is an interesting development, as The Messenger can now roll with Desperado. This significantly increases the weapon’s rate of fire, which turns this heavy-hitting Pulse Rifle into one that can compete with some of the faster RoF Pulses on the market.

The Messenger god roll for PVP

As far as Pulse Rifles go, The Messenger is a top contender for being one of the best to use in Crucible. This thing can now roll with Desperado, which was a perk that was previously limited only to Redrix’s Claymore, an old Pinnacle weapon. The perks you want to be aiming for on The Messenger are as follows:

• Barrel: Chambered Compensator (Stability +10, Recoil +10, Handling -5)
• Magazine: Ricochet Rounds (Range +5, Stability +10)
• Perk 1: Killing Wind
• Perk 2: Desperado

An alternate Barrel perk would be Extended Barrel for the boost to Range instead of Stability or Hammer-Forged Barrel for the pure Range buff. Alternatively, if you don’t want to take the hit to weapon handling, Smallbore is a great option albeit with not as much of a stat boost.

For the Magazine perk, Ricochet Rounds will help boost that Stability up further, which will come in handy when the second perk kicks in. You really want to reign in the kick of The Messenger in order to take advantage of its rate of fire. High-Caliber Rounds are good, if only for the slight boost to Range, but this is handled by the first perk.

All that talk of perks brings us to the actual two perks you want in PVP: Killing Wind and Desperado. Killing Wind boosts mobility, range, and handling for a short duration after final blows while Desperado increases your rate of fire when you reload after a precision final blow. That means each kill will push out your range while a headshot kill followed by a reload makes you shoot faster. This turns The Messenger into a punishing Pulse Rifle to fight against.

The Messenger god roll for PVE

As far as a PVE god roll for The Messenger goes, that can ultimately come down to personal preference. While Light.gg might suggest that Rapid Hit is a gold standard, there are some other options that make the Pulse Rifle feel better.

• Barrel: Smallbore (Range +7, Stability +7)
• Magazine: Appended Mag (Magazine +20)
• Perk 1: Outlaw
• Perk 2: Kill Clip

Smallbore is a fantastic Barrel perk that sees the Range and Stability stat increased a bit. Unlike PVP, Range and Handling aren't that important in PVE activities. However, if you’re really struggling with the Stability, aim for some of the Barrel perks listed under the PVP god roll.

Appended Mag is all about getting more bullets in a magazine without having to take a hit it another stat. While Extended Mag does offer more rounds, it comes at a significant cost to Reload Speed. Outlaw can make up for this, but I’d personally prefer a faster reload speed just in case a reload happens without a precision kill.

In terms of perks, this can be quite the personal preference. Outlaw is a great perk, as a faster reload speed gets you back into the fight sooner. However, it does require a precision kill. Rapid Hit is the other great option.

For the second perk, Kill Clip remains a powerful perk that gives a nice bump to damage. The perk One for All does increase damage for a moderate duration, but you must hit three separate targets for this to happen. In PVE activities like Strikes or raids, sometimes your allies can clear up adds faster than you can hit three different enemies.

Earning a god roll for The Messenger will take quite a lot of Trials of Osiris matches, unless you’ve got some incredible RNG going for you. As with all weapons, a god roll will ultimately come down to personal preference. Whatever roll you get, see how it feels and decide whether it matches your playstyle. Take a moment to read the Shacknews Destiny 2 guide for more weapon overviews and god roll suggestions.

Sam Chandler

Guides Editor

Hailing from the land down under, Sam Chandler brings a bit of the southern hemisphere flair to his work. After bouncing round a few universities, securing a bachelor degree, and entering the video game industry, he's found his new family here at Shacknews as a Guides Editor. There's nothing he loves more than crafting a guide that will help someone. If you need help with a guide, or notice something not quite right, you can Tweet him: @SamuelChandler