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- What Is Damage Resistance?
- Stacking Damage Resistance
- Damage Resistance Versus Reducing Enemy Damage
- All Damage Resistance Sources
- Damage Resistance FAQ
Delving into Destiny 2's endgame can be daunting if you're new. Running your first Grandmaster Nightfall or Master raid can be frustrating with one-tapping snipers and high-damage enemies. That's why most of your builds should have some form of damage resistance.
Related: Destiny 2: Ability Cooldowns And Super Tiers Explained
Reducing the damage you take in endgame content is vital to success, and damage resistance can even be used in PvP to lengthen the TTK of most meta weapons. In this guide, we'll go over what damage resistance is, how stacking resist works, and we'll cover every source of damage resistance currently available in Destiny 2.
Updated March 12, 2023, by Charles Burgar: We've updated this guide to only include currently available DR sources in Destiny 2, seeing as Lightfall removed the likes of Protective Light and Well of Tenacity. All tables have also been updated with current DR values as of Season of Defiance.
What Is Damage Resistance?
Damage resistance (otherwise known as "DR") is a mechanic that reduces incoming damage from certain sources. The more damage resistance you have, the less damage you'll take and the more likely you'll survive a gunfight. This mechanic is more prevalent in PvE activities than in the Crucible, but it's possible to get damage resistance against opposing Guardians.
Endgame Destiny 2 content is tuned around players having at least some form of damage resistance. Snipers one-shot players in Grandmaster Nightfalls, and most enemies deal absurd damage in Master-tier content. All it takes is a few armor mods to prevent yourself from getting one-shot by certain endgame foes. If you want to tackle Destiny's hardest PvE activities, you'll want some damage resistance in your build.
The Resist Buff Explained
This is an outdated buff effect that only a few Exotics use. You'll need to calculate your DR to get an accurate idea of how tanky you are (explained later in the guide).
While using certain damage resistance sources, you might come across the "Resist x[Value]" buff on your HUD. This is meant to give an approximation of your character's current damage resistance, although it's not as reliable as you'd expect. Certain damage resistance sources (notably chest DR mods and the Resilience stat) do not display on your HUD. The buff is meant to notify you of more circ*mstantial DR sources that are active—notable examples including Whisper of Chains, Emergency Reinforcement, and The Stag Exotic for Warlocks.
Each Resist stack roughly equates to the following damage resistance values:
Resist | PvE | PvP |
|---|---|---|
Resist x1 | 10% | 2.5% |
Resist x2 | 25% | 5% |
Resist x3 | 40% | 7.5% |
Resist x4 | 50% | 10% |
Resist x1 is currently only achievable by using the Emergency Reinforcement mod, granting 10% DR. Whisper of Chains also states it gives "Resist," yet that buff is far stronger in PvE.
Resist x2 appears on Renewal Grasps and The Stag, showcasing you have roughly 25% DR.
Resist x3 is shown while Whisper of Chains is paired with either Renewal Grasps or The Stag. This is supposed to represent a 40% DR buff but is closer to 50% in PvE.
Resist x4 notably appears while using Omnioculus, a Hunter Exotic that grants 50% damage resistance in PvE while invisible.
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Stacking Damage Resistance
In general, most sources of damage resistance grant anywhere from 10-50% damage resistance, some outliers notwithstanding. However, unlike most damage buffs, you can stack damage resistance. Multiple sources of damage resistance stack together multiplicatively, not additively. In layman's terms, you get diminishing returns from stacking multiple damage resistance sources.
A great example is the damage resistance category of mods on your chest armor. Each mod gives 15% damage resistance against a given damage type. Should you use two of the same mod (such as Concussive Dampener), you don't get 30%; you actually get 25% damage resistance. This is for two reasons:
- Both mods are stacking multiplicatively.
- Stacking the same mod twice will give diminishing returns.
So you're getting hit with diminishing returns twice in this case. However, if you stacked two different 15% DR sources, you'd get 27.5% damage resistance—slightly higher than stacking two of the same mod.
Calculating Damage Resistance
Calculating your Guardian's damage resistance is quite easy. Subtract one from your damage resistance's percent value, and do this for every DR source. Once complete, multiply them together to get your true damage taken.
(1-X) * (1-Y) * (1-Z)...
Each variable represents your DR percentage from a certain source. For example, if we're using the Protective Light and Striking Light mods, we'd calculate it as:
(1-10%) * (1-25%) = 0.675
For our DR value itself, subtract that value from one like so:
1 - 0.675 = 0.325
We take 67.5% of our initial damage, meaning we have 32.5% damage resistance.
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Related: Destiny 2 The Witch Queen: A Complete Guide To Weapon Crafting
Damage Resistance Versus Reducing Enemy Damage
There are a few mods and weapon traits that reduce the damage output of certain enemies. Most players assume this is another form of damage resistance, but that's not entirely true. Reducing an enemy's damage output is a separate modifier that is far stronger than stacking more damage resistance.
The best example of this behavior is the Renewal Grasps Exotic for Hunters. While equipped, Duskfield Grenades grant 25% damage resistance while inside and debuffs enemy damage by 50%. Paired with the Whisper of Chains Fragment (40% DR), you'd have 65% damage reduction and take 50% less damage from that enemy. If that was standard damage resistance, you'd have 77.5% DR. In-game, your effective damage resistance is actually higher at 88.75% because the enemy is dealing half as much damage, regardless of your DR.
If you have 50% DR, the 50% reduced damage from the enemy gives you an effective 75% DR. If you have 80% DR, halving an enemy's damage output would bump it up to 90%. That's why reducing enemy damage is so powerful and why sources of this effect are scarce. For the rest of this guide, we'll be separating the two effects to reflect in-game effects as closely as possible.
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All Damage Resistance Sources
Since there's a wide array of damage resistance sources, we'll be splitting this section into multiple subsections, listing certain DR sources in unique tables. DR sources range from 10-50% on average, although certain Exotics, weapons, and subclass nodes can push this even further.
There are also a few more sources of DR we'd like to mention before showcasing the tables:
- Supers: Each Super in Destiny 2 (except Golden Gun in PvP) gives some amount of damage resistance—even one-and-done Supers.
- Finishers: While hard to test, Finishers seem to give around 65% damage resistance while in a finisher animation.
- Power Level: Being overleveled for an activity reduces the damage you take from enemies up to 25%, provided the activity doesn't limit your Power maximum.
- Visit u/Bachmanetti's post for more information on this topic.
Resilience
Season of the Haunted has reworked the Resilience stat to grant damage resistance in PvE only; the damage resistance bonus does not affect the Crucible in any way. Similar to Recovery, Resilience's DR bonus becomes exponentially better the more points you invest into the stat. At 100 Resilience, you'll gain an additional 30% damage resistance. All DR values for each Resilience tier are listed below.
Resilience still grants bonus shields with each rank, same as in previous seasons. This means that your effective health pool (EHP) is slightly higher than the DR listed below. DR gained through Resilience stacks multiplicatively with all other DR sources. Exceeding 100 Resilience grants no bonus damage resistance.
Resilience Damage Resistance | |
|---|---|
Resilience Tier | Resistance (PvE) |
Tier 0 | 0% |
Tier 1 | 2% |
Tier 2 | 3% |
Tier 3 | 5% |
Tier 4 | 9% |
Tier 5 | 14% |
Tier 6 | 17% |
Tier 7 | 20% |
Tier 8 | 24% |
Tier 9 | 27% |
Tier 10 | 30% |
Damage Resistance Mods
General Damage Resistance Mods | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Source | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Emergency Reinforcement | Chest Armor | 10% | N/A |
Elemental DR Mods | Chest Armor | 15% against that element | N/A |
Concussive Dampener | Chest Armor | 15% against AoE attacks | N/A |
Melee Dampener | Chest Armor | 15% against enemies within 4m of you | N/A |
Sniper Resistance | Chest Armor | 15% against enemies over 30m from you | N/A |
Woven Mail | Strand Buff | 60% | 25% |
Activity-Specific Damage Resistance Mods | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Source | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Riven's Curse | Dreaming City Armor | -3% per stack (Dreaming City only) | N/A |
Resistant Tether | Garden of Salvation Armor | 5% per stack while tethered (GoS only) | N/A |
Enhanced Resistant Tether | Garden of Salvation Armor | 10% per stack while tethered (GoS only) | N/A |
Dreambane Mod | Moon Armor | 10% per stack against Nightmare bosses | N/A |
Weapons And Exotics
Weapons | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Source | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Land Tank | Origin Trait | *5% per stack | N/A |
Arc Conductor | Riskrunner | 50% (Arc only) | 50% (Arc only) |
Blocking (Swords) | Swords | 50-80% | 50-80% |
Blocking (Glaives) | Glaives | 97.5% | 50% |
*This DR is separate from the bonus Resilience Land Tank provides.
Exotics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Class | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Wings Of Sacred Dawn | Warlock | 15% while aiming midair | 10% while aiming midair |
Contraverse Hold | Warlock | 20% while overcharging a grenade | 20% while overcharging a grenade |
The Stag | Warlock | 25% while in a Rift | 10% while in a Rift |
Renewal Grasps | Hunter | 25% while in a Duskfield | 10% while in a Duskfield |
ACD/0 Feedback Fence | Titan | *33% per stack on next melee hit taken | *33% per stack on next melee hit taken |
Omnioculus | Hunter | 50% while invisible | 10% while invisible |
Stronghold | Titan | 80% while blocking with a Sword | 80% while blocking with a Sword |
*Stacks are multiplicative. Max stacks grant ~70% damage reduction on the next melee hit you take.
Subclass Damage Resistance Sources
Subclass Aspects, Fragments, And Nodes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Subclass | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Freeze (Primaries Only) | Stasis Debuff | 5% | 50% |
Amplified (Sprinting) | Arc Buff | 15% | N/A |
Juggernaut (Sprinting) | Striker Titan | 33% | N/A |
Spark Of Resistance | Arc Fragment | 25% while surrounded | 7.5% while surrounded |
Whisper Of Chains | Stasis Fragment | 40% while near Stasis | 7.5% while near Stasis |
Void Overshields | Sentinel Titan | 50% | N/A |
Lightning Reflexes | Arcstrider Aspect | 97% while dodging | 32% while dodging |
Super Damage Resistance
In PvP, Supers have a specific DR value assigned to them. In PvE, you gain an additional 60% DR that's multiplicative with the Super's PvP resistance. PvE values are assuming no other forms of DR are active.
Super Damage Resistance | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Super | Class | Resistance (PvE) | Resistance (PvP) |
Golden Gun | Hunter | 60% | 0% |
Deadshot Golden Gun (Knock 'Em Down) | Hunter | 66% | 15% |
Chaos Reach | Warlock | 68% | 20% |
Glacial Quake | Titan | 79% | 47% |
Blade Barrage | Hunter | 79.6% | 49% |
Needlestorm | Warlock | 79.6% | 49% |
Nova Bomb | Warlock | 79.6% | 49% |
*Well Of Radiance | Warlock | 79.6% | 49% |
Bladefury | Titan | 80% | 51% |
Dawnblade | Warlock | 80% | 51% |
Nova Warp | Warlock | 80% | 51% |
Shadebinder | Warlock | 80% | 51% |
Hammer Of Sol | Titan | 80% | 51% |
Spectral Blades (Uncloaked) | Hunter | 80% | 52% |
Stormtrance | Warlock | 81% | 53% |
Burning Maul | Titan | 81% | 53% |
Fists Of Havoc | Titan | 81% | 53% |
Thundercrash | Titan | 81% | 53% |
Sentinel Shield | Titan | 81% | 53% |
Arc Staff | Hunter | 81% | 53% |
Gathering Storm | Hunter | 81% | 53% |
Silkstride | Hunter | 81% | 53% |
Shadowshot | Hunter | 81% | 53% |
Spectral Blades (Cloaked) | Hunter | 82% | 54.4% |
*Since Well of Radiance constantly heals you, it's incredibly difficult to get accurate DR numbers. Take these values with a grain of salt.
Reducing Enemy Damage Sources
Reducing Enemy Damage | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Name | Source | Damage Reduction (PvE) | Damage Reduction (PvP) |
Psychohack | Origin Trait | 20% | 10% |
Overload | Artifact Mod | 25% | 0% |
Renewal Grasps | Hunter Exotic | 50% while in a Duskfield | 20% while in a Duskfield |
Sever | Strand Debuff | 50% | 10% |
Damage Resistance From Power Level
u/Bachmanetti's graph showcases the relationship between damage taken and how under/overleveled you are for a given activity.
More graphs and information on this topic can be found in u/Bachmanetti's r/raidsecrets post discussing damage resistance.
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Related: Destiny 2: Craftable God Rolls Worth The Grind
Damage Resistance FAQ
Does Resilience Give Damage Resistance?
Yes, it does. Season of the Haunted added a DR rating to all Resilience tiers, reducing the damage you take against combatants in PvE. Resilience's DR bonus does not affect PvP in any way, although the bonus shields from this stat still impact PvP. At 100 Resilience, you'll take 30% less damage from PvE enemies, stacking multiplicatively with any other DR sources you have active.
Is There A Damage Resistance Cap?
No. Multiple damage resistance sources stack multiplicatively, meaning each added DR source gets less and less effective. This makes it nearly impossible to achieve damage immunity solely through perks and Resilience, although blocking with a Glaive in PvE can get you very close to 100% DR.
What Is The Best Damage Resistance Source?
For PvE, spec for Resilience and use chest DR mods. The former gives 30% damage resistance against all damage types, and your chest can equip two DR mods at once. The Emergency Reinforcement mod can give an additional 10% damage resistance for a short time while active, although you'll need a way to gain Armor Charge. Check out our armor mods guide to learn how Armor Charge works.
For PvP, use your Super. Almost every Super in Destiny 2 gives damage resistance while active, making it a little easier to push the enemy and land a few kills. For a more passive form of DR, the Hunter's Omnioculus Exotic, the Sentinel Titan's overshield (this technically gives EHP but is worth mentioning), and the Warlock's Stag Exotic are worth using.
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Next: Destiny 2: Airborne Effectiveness Explained
