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The Witch Queen expansion has introduced new ways for Hunters to dominate the competition in Destiny 2. Several new Exotics, Void 3.0, and Artifact mods have given Hunters some new toys to play with.

Related: The Best Exotics For Hunters In Destiny 2, Ranked

Today, we will be looking at ten powerful Hunter builds—five for PvE and five for PvP. Infinite melee abilities, the ultimate PvE solo build, and powerful support builds are just a few things we'll cover. Get ready to take the Hunter class to its absolute limit.

Foreword

Before we begin, we do mention Combat Style mods quite a bit. If you don't know how these mods work, we have guides on each Combat Style mod type. You can find them below:

Updated October 5th, 2022, by Charles Burgar: Season of the Risen brought an overhaul to the Arcstrider subclass and arguably the best Nightstalker Exotic since Omnioculus was released. We've replaced four builds in this guide. Check out our PvP Arcstrider build that uses invisibility and deadly punches, our Caliban's Hand PvP build that lets you wipe fireteams with two button presses, or our PvE builds that showcase the strength of Arcstrider and Gyrfalcon's Hauberk.

PvP: Lasting Sting

Why Play This Build?

Weapon combos are an underutilized aspect of Destiny buildcrafting. Most builds focus on maximizing the effect of a single ability or weapon. Not this one. This build turns you into the ultimate space cowboy and/or archer, winning gunfights with the flick of the wrist.

This build uses three things: your favorite Bow or Eriana's Vow, Lucky Pants, and a good Hand Cannon. Your Bow will open engagements, dealing a massive blow to the enemy. You'll then immediately switch to your Hand Cannon to deliver the final blow. Rinse and repeat. Lucky Pants makes this playstyle incredibly smooth, and fans of Bows can flex their muscles against Guardians that strictly follow the meta.

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PvP: Escape Artist

Why Play This Build?

Arcstrider is the perfect PvP subclass for aggressive playstyles. Its speed buffs and various high-damage abilities can swing a match in your favor, yet Arc subclasses have one issue in PvP: survivability. This build aims to fix that.

The secret ingredient to a tanky Arcstrider is Assassin's Cowl, an Exotic helmet that turns you invisible and heals you after a melee kill. And thanks to Arcstrider's amazing melee abilities, you'll be able to lung towards your foes for easy cleanups, turn invisible while benefiting from Amplified's speed buffs, and you'll have access to some of Destiny 2's best grenades and Supers. Best of all, since this build uses melee abilities, you'll get to benefit from Swashbuckler Shotguns and Bows one-tapping Guardians for excellent weapon synergy.

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PvP: Vermin's Shroud

Why Play This Build?

This build merges the strengths of Revenant and Nightstalker together to keep your enemies disoriented. You'll be able to constantly slow your enemies, go invisible after every kill, and periodically teleport. Lure your enemies close to you, slow them, strike them down with Rat King, then teleport into Invisibility while slowing all nearby targets. It's tricky to use in 3v3 modes, but this build causes some serious carnage in 6v6 modes, especially Rift.

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Related: Destiny 2: The Best Warlock Builds For PvP And PvE

PvP: Mark Of Caliban

Why Play This Build?

Caliban's Hand is a terror in the Crucible. Inspired by CoolGuy's Solar 3.0 build, it's possible to turn your Proximity Explosive Knife from a mediocre melee ability into a miniature rocket that can kill an entire enemy team.

This is all thanks to the power of Ignites. Caliban's Hand and a well-placed grenade can make any Guardian spontaneously combust, leading to easy kills in 6v6 and even Trials of Osiris. Master the one-two combo, and you'll have no issue topping the scoreboard every match.

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PvP: Veil Of Eyes

Why Play This Build?

If you love playing a support, this build is for you. Omnioculus is one of the strongest Nightstalker Exotics in the game, allowing you to make your entire team invisible whenever you see fit. Make your team invisible in Rift to get an easy dunk, cloak all allies near a Control objective, or create a fake radar ping in Trials of Osiris to get an easy pick. You have complete control over the enemy's radar and have damage resistance to boot. Master this build, and few players will be able to stop you.

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Related: Destiny 2: How To Increase Your Strange Favor

PvE: Shinobu's Guidance

Why Play This Build?

Most players know how strong Liar's Handshake is with Arcstrider, but have you tried Shinobu's Vow? This build turns Arcstrider on its head by making it the ultimate grenade-spewing subclass for Hunters. Chuck infinite Skip Grenades at your foes while benefiting from Arcstrider's absurd speed and great melee abilities.

This build focuses on maximizing Skip Grenades through Shinobu's Vow, Exotic gloves that enhance your Skip Grenades. These grenades have aggressive tracking, deal solid damage thanks to Jolt, and grant almost a full grenade charge if all Skips hit something. Paired with Combat Style mods, you can throw an infinite supply of grenades with little micromanaging required.

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Related: Destiny 2: The Best Titan Builds For PvP And PvE

PvE: Cowl Of Knives

Why Play This Build?

Gunslinger might be the best melee spec out of every Hunter subclass currently. Knock 'Em Down and the Ember of Torches Fragment allows you to have nigh-infinite melee charges and a constant 255 damage buff. What better way to take advantage of this than Assassin's Cowl?

This build lets you spam melee charges, trigger ignites with ease, go invisible after every melee kill, trigger multiple sources of healing, and you have access to a good DPS Super. Classy Restoration is not required for this build, but it is recommended. If you want a good solo build for farming Lost Sectors or solo flawless dungeons, give this build a try.

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Related: Destiny 2 The Witch Queen: A Complete Guide To Weapon Crafting

PvE: Disciple Of The Void

GYRFALCON'S HAUBERK IS CURRENTLY DISABLED. The build will not function until this Exotic is re-enabled.

Why Play This Build?

Do you like Nightstalker's invisibility mechanic but hate its gameplay loop? Is Omnioculus too boring for you? If so, this build is for you. Season of the Plunder's Gyrfalcon's Hauberk Exotic turns Hunters into the archetypal rogue, allowing you to deal massive damage upon breaking out of invisibility.

We'll be using Stylish Executioner with Echo of Instability (or Collective Obligation) to constantly trigger invisibility, granting you a near-permanent 35% damage buff. Stack this with Font of Might and a weapon damage perk, and you're in for a good time. You'll destroy red bars in GMs, annihilate majors in casual content, and deal top raid DPS with little issue.

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PvE: Winter's Fury

Why Play This Build?

Revenant is one of the best add-clearing specs that a Hunter can use, slowing and freezing targets with ease. It has quite a few similarities to Nightstalker but is missing a safety net: Invisibility. That's where Assassin's Cowl comes in. This Exotic gives your Withering Blade the ability to heal and turn you invisible when they slay a target.

This build turns you into the ultimate ice ninja. Throw shurikens to turn invisible, grenades to freeze hordes of enemies, and have the ability to boost your damage or increase your survivability with Combat Style Mods. You'll be virtually invincible and have infinite melee charges.

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PvE: Elusive Pathfinder

Why Play This Build?

Bottom Tree Nightstalker might not be around anymore, but that doesn't mean you can't support your team. This build serves as the ultimate Nightstalker support build that grants constant invisibility to yourself and allies, giving everyone 50% damage resistance while invisible. You'll have infinite Smoke Bombs, damage resistance and invisibility on command, powerful Vortex Grenades with short cooldowns, and you'll be able to spawn dozens of Elemental Wells for your team with just a few grenades.

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Next: Destiny 2: Best Exotic Armor For Arc 3.0