In Destiny 2 we take a closer look at the Rat King perk Pack Rats. What advantages do you gain when 6 Guardians equip the Rat King?
The Rat King was one of the most sought-after weapons even before the launch of Destiny 2. At several preview events, a model of it was displayed in a showcase, allowing everyone to admire the unique design of this weapon from all sides.
The weapon is elaborately decorated with rats, seemingly digging a tunnel through the barrel:
The Rat King is an exotic pistol available through an Exotic quest . Besides its extravagant look, it features two special perks:
- Pack Rats: The weapon becomes stronger when allies nearby also have the Rat King equipped. The effect can stack up to 6 times.
- Pest Control: If you reload immediately after a kill, you become invisible for a short time.
How does the Pack Rats perk work exactly?
More magazine, higher fire rate – The Pack Rats perk
To benefit from the Pack Rats perk, allies must be nearby. These screenshots give an idea of how close they need to be:
Here the ally is still too far away:
From this distance, the perk activates – the weapon begins to glow:
The more allies that also have the Rat King equipped are nearby, the “stronger” the weapon becomes. But what does “stronger” mean?
In fact, the exotic perk has no influence on the damage dealt per bullet. The damage numbers you deal to an enemy remain constant – regardless of how many allies you have around you.
Instead, two values are affected:
- The fire rate
- and the magazine size
The Rat King has a base fire rate of 300. The more allies you have around you, the faster you can shoot. When the maximum of five allies is nearby, the weapon shoots as fast as you can pull the trigger. However, there is hardly any noticeable difference in fire rate even before reaching the maximum. In this video, you can see the increase in fire rate, the point is marked (1:56):
For magazine size, the Rat King starts with 15 shots:
- 1 ally: 15 shots (no change)
- 2 allies: 16 shots
- 3 allies: 17 shots
- 4 allies: 18 shots
- 5 allies: 20 shots
The damage per bullet does not change, but the damage over time increases significantly.
Is the Pack Rats perk worth it in practice? The Rat King is definitely a weapon that feels exotic and has some of the most exciting perks. You should definitely give it a try.
However, the weapon can only reach its full potential in raids – and there are hardly any meaningful applications for the Rat King there, as Guardians are usually spread out. Only during the baths in the middle or against Calus in the damage phase, but there are better exotic alternatives for that. Also, the Rat King is a pistol that is only effective at close range.
Overall, the Rat King is more of a fun weapon that can be extremely strong in certain situations. However, in raids, other exotics, like the Ruthless, are usually more useful.
What do you think of the Rat King?
