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Do Damage Buffs Stack in Destiny 2? A Comprehensive Guide

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Yes, damage buffs do stack in Destiny 2, but it’s not as simple as adding percentages together. The game employs a multiplicative stacking system, which means each buff’s increase is calculated based on the current damage output, rather than the base damage. This system can create some impressive damage boosts when combined correctly, but it also means that stacking too many buffs can lead to diminishing returns. Understanding how these buffs work together is crucial for maximizing your DPS (Damage Per Second) and conquering the toughest challenges the game has to offer.

Understanding Multiplicative Buff Stacking

The core concept to grasp is that buffs multiply against each other. For example, if you have a weapon that deals 100 base damage, and you apply a 20% buff, your damage increases to 120. Now, if you add another 10% buff, you don’t just add 10% to the base 100, instead you add 10% to the current 120, resulting in 132 damage. This is a multiplicative effect. This differs from additive stacking where buffs would simply add up 20% + 10% + etc.

Empowering vs. Weapon Surges

Destiny 2 has various categories of damage buffs:

Empowering Buffs: These are buffs like Radiant from Solar 3.0, Weapons of Light from the Titan’s Sentinel subclass, and similar effects that generally apply to all weapons and abilities.
Weapon Surges: These buffs are tied to seasonal artifacts or specific subclass perks, providing a general damage increase to weapons of a certain type or element, like Arc Weapon Surge or Solar Weapon Surge.
Weapon Perks: These are specific buffs found on the weapon itself, such as Frenzy, One for All, or Surrounded.

Empowering buffs and weapon perks generally stack multiplicatively with each other and with weapon surges. This means combining a powerful weapon perk with a strong empowering buff and a matching surge will yield a very significant boost to your damage. For instance, a weapon with Frenzy, empowered by Radiant, and a matching weapon surge will provide a huge damage increase when all buffs are active.

Example Calculation

Let’s say a weapon has the Frenzy perk (15% damage increase) and you are also affected by Radiant (25% damage increase). These buffs stack multiplicatively, so the damage will be increased by:

1 + (0.15) + 0.25 + (0.15 * 0.25) = 1.4375 or 43.75% increase over base damage.

Now, if we add a Tier 3 Weapon Surge (22% damage increase) into the mix, we would now have:

1 + (0.15) + 0.25 + (0.22) + (0.15 * 0.25) + (0.15 * 0.22) + (0.25 * 0.22) + (0.15 * 0.25 * 0.22) = 1.75 or 75% increase over base damage.

As you can see, the damage increase grows substantially when multiplicative buffs are combined.

Common Exceptions and Restrictions

While most damage buffs stack multiplicatively, there are some notable exceptions and restrictions:

High-Energy Fire: This Charged with Light mod provides a T1 damage buff, but it does not stack with Empowering buffs such as Weapons of Light or Radiant. This means it’s generally less useful in situations where you’re already benefiting from those powerful buffs.
One for All: This perk provides a significant 35% damage increase for 10 seconds after hitting 3 different enemies. It is multiplicative with other buffs.
Solo Operative: This artifact mod provides a flat 15% damage increase to solo players. This is also multiplicative with other buffs.
Surrounded: This perk grants 25% bonus to Sword damage and a 30% bonus to other weapons when three or more enemies are within 15m of the player. If the weapon has the Surrounded Spec mod then this damage is raised to 35% for Swords and 40% for other weapons.

Understanding these exceptions is crucial for optimizing your build and playstyle. It’s important to consider which buffs work well together and which ones are less synergistic.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are some frequently asked questions regarding damage buffs in Destiny 2:

Does the Bait and Switch perk stack with other damage buffs? Yes, Bait and Switch stacks multiplicatively with other damage buffs, making it one of the strongest perks for boss damage. It provides a 35% damage increase after hitting the enemy with your other guns.
How does Foetracer’s damage buff work? The Foetracer exotic helmet provides a 25% damage buff on targets it marks after a shackle throw or grapple. This also stacks multiplicatively with other buffs.
Do damage resistance mods stack? Yes, damage resistance mods stack multiplicatively, leading to diminishing returns. While stacking these can improve your survivability, the additional reduction from each new source will be less impactful.
What is the best damage class in Destiny 2? The best is subjective based on playstyle and content but the current meta often favors Solar Warlocks (Dawnblade) for their damage potential, survivability, and ease of use.
Does boss spec stack? Boss Spec which provides a flat 7.5% damage increase against bosses and vehicles, stacks multiplicatively with other damage buffs.
Do burn damage stacks? Yes, multiple instances of burn damage can stack, with each application having its own timer, which is beneficial when using abilities like the warlock solar melee.
What about damage taken, does that stack? Damage reduction or taken buffs and debuffs also stack multiplicatively. Similar to damage buffs, each source will reduce a current total, rather than simply adding the reduction together.
Does Weapons of Light stack with Super damage? Weapons of Light boosts the damage of your weapons, but does not directly increase your Super damage.
Do Limit Breaks in Destiny 2 get affected by damage buffs? Limit Breaks are unique damage types that do not receive any benefit from player-based damage buffs.
Does the Artifact Perk “Solo Operative” stack with other buffs? Yes, this perk does stack multiplicatively with all other buffs, resulting in a flat 15% damage increase.
Are sidearms strong now? Sidearms received a 20% damage buff to red and orange bars in a recent patch. They now have better performance than before.
Do all buffs scale with faith? No, the Faith attribute scaling only applies to faith-based abilities and buffs found in some games such as Elden Ring, and does not apply to Destiny 2.
Can you put damage on the stack? No, damage itself does not use the stack in many games such as Magic the Gathering, however many effects that cause damage do use the stack.
Does double damage stack? Yes, double damage effects stack multiplicatively. For example two doubles result in quadrupled damage and three results in eight times the base damage.
Does smoke count as fire damage? No, smoke and fire damage are different forms of harm and require different cleanup methods. This is not relevant to Destiny 2 damage.

Conclusion

Understanding how damage buffs stack in Destiny 2 is essential for maximizing your effectiveness in combat. By combining the right weapon perks, subclass buffs, and artifact mods, you can significantly increase your damage output, allowing you to conquer even the most challenging content. Remember to consider the multiplicative nature of these buffs, and to familiarize yourself with exceptions like High-Energy Fire to create optimal builds. By doing so, you’ll be able to consistently bring the heat to any encounter in Destiny 2.