As a hardcore Destiny 2 player with over 1000 hours logged, I‘ve unlocked and tested every finisher in the game. When that Fallen captain‘s health bar hits low, nothing beats executing a slick finisher animation to flex on enemies and feel that sweet, sweet power trip.
In this ultimate guide, I‘ll be sharing my top-tier picks for the best finishers suited for each Guardian class in 2023. Complete with juicy details on what makes them so great, how to acquire your favorites, and tips to equip them for maximum style points. Let‘s dive in!
What Are Finishers and How Do They Work?
For those new to Destiny 2, finisher moves allow you to brutally execute enemies with a fancy animation when their health drops below ~20%. Think of them as ultra kill moves.
To pull off a finisher, simply get within melee range of a low health enemy and hold the finisher hotkey. On PC that‘s the default "Q" key, on console it‘s holding the right D-Pad button.
Your Guardian will then lay down some sweet hurt through a short cinematic to finish off that foe. When it comes to pure fun factor finishers are hard to beat, but they do have some practical utility as well:
Benefits of Finishers
- Stylishly flex on enemies
- Fully restores your melee ability
- Generates Heavy ammo
- Reload equipped weapons instantly with mods
- Heal yourself with mods
However, finishers leave you vulnerable for their 2-3 second duration. So make sure you don‘t get blindsided by other enemies mid-animation!
With all that explained, let‘s get into the good stuff: the absolute best finishers you can rock in Destiny 2 today.
How to Unlock Finishiers
Before jumping into the best picks, I first want to cover how to unlock finishers so you can get your favorites. There are a few main methods:
Purchase for Bright Dust/Silver on Eververse: This specialty Destiny store rotates various finishers you can buy directly using two currencies: Bright Dust earned from bounties or Silver bought with real money.
Acquire from Season Pass Rewards: Premium season passes included with paid expansions reward players with finishers like the awesome Ring Bearer move for Season of The Seraph.
Random Bright Engram drops: Leveling up your season pass beyond 100 starts dropping Bright Engrams with random vanity items including finishers. But this is unreliable.
My advice is to routinely check Eververse‘s current finisher bundles to grab the ones you really want with Bright Dust instead of leaving it to chance with Bright Engrams.
Okay, let‘s finally get into the Titan, Warlock, and Hunter finishers worth grinding for!
Best Titan Finishers
Titans are all about channeling raw brute force to crush foes, so their most satisfying finishers double down on devastating weapon blows.
Fracturing Slam
Season: 12
Description: Summon a fiery hammer and violently slam the enemy into the ground
Why it‘s awesome: Nothing sells that earthquake-fist missile Titan fantasy better than Fracturing Slam‘s weighty hammer blow. I live for the split second hover at the finisher‘s peak before mercilessly smashing enemies into the dirt.
Pairing this finisher with my Burning Maul solar subclass and watching flaming sparks fly with the violent ground impact never gets old. It just oozes raw damage.
And with a brisk 1.95 second animation speed, it‘s one of the quickest ways to style on fools without leaving yourself overly exposed compared to longer moves. Absolute perfection.
Seismic Strike
Season: 11
Description: Deliver a massive electrified uppercut to launch enemies
Why it‘s awesome: All Titans love good ol‘ seismic strike and this flashy finisher translates that violent punch melee beautifully. Nothing says "Titan smash!" better than decking a hapless dreg and sending them flying sky high from an electrified fist.
I often pair this finisher with my Arc subclass for maximum Thor energy. The over-the-shoulder camera perspective as you wind up to utterly flatten enemies creates such a viscerally satisfying POV too.
Hammer Throw
Season: 5
Description: Pull out your flaming hammer and hurl it at the enemy‘s face
Why it‘s awesome: As a long-time throwing hammer enjoyer, Hammer Throw holds a special place in my heart. It perfectly captures that hammer warrior playstyle fantasy by letting you smash foes in the face with Sol‘s judgement.
And I can‘t deny this tried and true classic remains popular in my fireteams for good reason – it‘s quick, it‘s brutal, and it‘s peak Titan energy condensed into a 1.5 second finisher animation. Perfection.
Best Warlock Finishers
For the mystical space wizards, their most stylish finishers tap into their otherworldly dark powers to literally obliterate enemies. These ooze that dark battlemage fantasy.
Stormtrance
Season: 6
Description: Envelop your enemy in a deadly stormtrance beam
Why it‘s awesome: As a chaos reach main, Stormtrance is hands down my favorite finisher in Destiny 2‘s entire lineup. The visual spectacle of suspending enemies midair in a lethal beam of arc energy is just chef‘s kiss.
Beyond eye candy, this finisher immaculately captures the overwhelming lethality of the Stormcaller subclass. Like you ripped an enemy straight into the heart of a storm cloud to be smote by nature‘s fury. So badass!
And with a nearly instant 1 second animation windup, it‘s one of the fastest ways to style on enemies without leaving yourself vulnerable. 10/10 would recommend all Warlocks equip this ASAP.
Dark Blossom
Season: 12
Description: Impale enemies on a vine of sharp thorns
Why it‘s awesome: Dark Blossom adds some dynamic flair by summoning a wicked vine whip to reel in and then fatally skewer victims. The thorn particles and sound effect sell this dark power fantasy remarkably well.
It seriously looks like you‘re channeling The Green or grabbing baddies with living wood. Perfect for my Thorn build that leans into corrupting enemies with suffering.
Atomize
Season: 17
Description: Vaporize enemies with a volatile blast of Void energy
Why it‘s awesome: As a Voidwalker connoisseur, I love how Atomize viscerally captures the volatile rounds perk visually. It‘s immensely satisfying witnessed enemies poof into purple particles by the might of your palm.
The beauty lies in the 1 second simplicity. No flashy effects, just raw decisive power obliterating bodies in a blink. Its lethality and speed make Atomize an essential in my finisher repertoire.
Best Hunter Finishers
When it comes to stylish killing, no class raises the bar like Hunters with their lethal agility and bag of tricks. These finishers encapsulate that fantasy.
Flourish
Season: 10
Description: Throw a fan of icy daggers to freeze and shred enemies
Why it‘s awesome: Flourish has some of the most gorgeous and satisfying visual effects when those frosty daggers sail through the air before finding their icy home in enemy skulls. The hunter throwing widespread daggers with that fancy spin move to summon them just oozes effortless style.
I often pair it with my stasis subclass for bonus glacier damage too. Seeing enemies frozen in place by the dagger barrage before ragdolling from accumulated damage never gets old!
And with a quick 1.5 second animation windup it‘s very easy to slip this finisher in between enemy attacks. Overall 11/10 style points.
Sureshot
Season: 18
Description: Quickdraw your Golden Gun for a fiery one-shot headshot
Why it‘s awesome: I can‘t properly express how amazingly lethal Sureshot looks in action. Hunters swiftly fanning Golden Gun‘s hammer before unceremoniously headshotting scrubs with a smoking hole through their faces just hits different. Like straight out of an old Western flick.
It also has one of the fastest animations around at only 1.25 seconds so you can dip in and out before baddies can react. For pure reliable badassery Sureshot is an essential pickup.
Slice And Dice
Season: 21
Description: Carve up enemies with rapid cuts using strands of gleaming daggers
Why it‘s awesome: I only recently unlocked this shiny new Strand-powered finisher but wow…Slice And Dice blows me away on all fronts. The art direction is phenomenal with those ethereal almost silken daggers swirling around your arms.
When executed, your Hunter stylishly spins while dealing a flurry of mystical dagger strikes. It encapsulates all the lethal grace and finesse Strand promised for the Hunter kit with animations that scream balletic lethality. Absolutely mesmerizing while retaining brutal efficiency chopping up fools in seconds!
I foresee Slice And Dice being a new gold standard that all future Hunter finishers will be compared against. It‘s just that damn good.
Are Finishers Worth It? Closing Thoughts
While most players obsess over chasing god rolls and meta loadouts, I‘m here to advocate for the importance of unlocking cool finishers as well! They make routine gameplay just a bit more exciting while making you look badass in the process.
Because let‘s be honest – effortlessly styling on enemies through brutal finishers ignites that sweet dopamine rush and power fantasy feeling Destiny does so well.
So if you‘ve got some extra Bright Dust or Silver lying around, do yourself a favor and grab a few new finishers from Eververse this season. My personal top recommendations are Fracturing Slam, Stormtrance, and Slice And Dice finishers for sheer wow factor.
And if you have your own sweet finishers worth shouting out or fun clips executing some gnarly ones in the wild, hit me up! Would love to hear what other Guardians rocking. Eyes up finishers await!
