Destiny: Achlyophagen-Symbiont – What can the dark Hunter helmet do in Year 2?

We present the exotic Hunter helmet Achlyophage Symbiont in the MMO shooter Destiny.

This weekend, the Agent of the Nine with the shaggy facial hair has a dark Hunter helmet on offer: He wants to charge you 13 Strange Coins for the “Achlyophage Symbiont.” But is this investment worth it?

How to get the helmet “Achlyophage Symbiont” in Destiny

You have several ways available to obtain this exotic helmet:

• Nightfall: You can snag the “Achlyophage Symbiont” through the Nightfall strike.

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  King’s Fall Raid: Visit the King of the Taken, as the item can also be found in the raid.
• Trials of Osiris: You can also grab the Hunter helmet in the weekly PvP event.
• Xur: As for example this weekend, Xur occasionally offers the “Achlyophage Symbiont.”

What makes the helmet “Achlyophage Symbiont” in Destiny stand out?

“Achlyophage Symbiont” is designed for the Gunslinger subclass of the Hunter, as it specifically impacts their super. There was a version of this helmet in year 1 of Destiny that had fixed perks. The “Year 2” version, however, has several random perks:

• The Last Man: The Golden Gun receives an additional shot per use. This is the only fixed perk of this helmet.
• In a random selection, you have the chance for Innervation (bonus grenade energy when picking up orbs), Strengthening (bonus melee energy when picking up orbs), Better Already (shields recharge immediately upon picking up an orb) and Infusion (health is restored when picking up a Light Orb).

  

• For the available extras, you have the chance for Reaping Shadow (increased super energy when defeating minions of darkness), From the Ashes (bonus super energy on grenade hits), Practically Inclined (bonus super energy when eliminating minions of darkness with melee kills), Sensory Shift (bonus super energy when finishing enemies with special weapons) and Hard Work, which gives you bonus super energy when you blast enemies with heavy weapons.
• Additionally, you can increase Intellect, Strength, or Discipline with further perks.

The Year 1 version of this Hunter helmet focused on enhancing grenades along with the bonus for the Golden Gun. In Year 2, the helmet is no longer specialized in that, but you can still use Innervation and From the Ashes to boost the grenades.

If you want to acquire the “Achlyophage Symbiont” from Xur this weekend, you will receive it with 56 intellect and the following perks:

• Strengthening
• Practically Inclined
• Hard Work
• Strength or Intellect can be increased
• The Last Man

How does the “Achlyophage Symbiont” perform in PvE and PvP?

In Year 1, this helmet was among the best Hunter helmets and was very popular in the community. Compared to this version, the “Achlyophage Symbiont” was significantly weakened in the second year – which is not immediately noticeable.

The nerf affects the “The Last Man” perk, which still grants an additional shot with the Golden Gun, but the duration for which the super is active is significantly reduced. Now, the exotic item “Achlyophage Symbiont” brings not only an advantage but also a significant disadvantage, which is especially noticeable in PvP.

The YouTuber Unknown Player pulled out the stopwatch and found out: Without the helmet, you have 11 seconds for three shots, with the helmet you have only 7 seconds for four shots. In PvE, this is not a huge limitation in many situations, as you might unload all four shots quickly in a strike against the big boss.

In PvP, however, the 7 seconds are tight. It won’t happen too often that you get to face four opponents in such a short time to deal with them. And if you’re not calling out “Hey, this is something I constantly find myself in!”, then there’s really no reason why you should choose this helmet in PvP. Here, three shots, which you have 11 seconds for, are likely to be more valuable.

Of course, a fourth shot while running can also be useful if you occasionally have problems aiming and the first three bullets fly past the target. Then you still have an ace up your sleeve and can pull out as a shining winner at the end of the day.

Numerous opinions from the community indicate that the Year 2 version of the “Achlyophage Symbiont” is significantly worse than the Year 1 version – especially in the Crucible. A clear recommendation cannot be issued at this point.

Below you can watch the review of our friend Nexxoss Gaming about the “better” version of the exotic helmet:

The flavor text of this armor piece reads:

“They said it would devour my dark thoughts and leave nothing but light behind.”

What do you think about the Hunter helmet “Achlyophage Symbiont” in Year 2?