Explanation of Armor Charge Builds in Destiny 2

After the release of the "Lightfall" expansion, most of the existing armor mods in Destiny 2 were removed, making armor charge mods quickly become the undisputed meta. Understanding how these mods function can be incredibly useful for players looking to optimize their builds in Destiny 2.

After reaching Guardian Rank 5 in Destiny 2, players gain access to armor charge mods. These mods allow players to obtain stackable enhancements such as improved ability cooldowns, increased weapon damage, additional abilities upon finishing kills, and other powerful advantages.

How to Generate and Maintain Armor Charges in Destiny 2

As long as players have an equipped modification that utilizes armor charges, collecting a power orb always grants an armor charge. Sometimes, seasonal artifact bonuses can also provide players with new ways to generate armor charges. Additional methods for generating armor charges require specific mods, including:

• Breaking an Elemental shield with a matching damage type
• When nearby teammates collect Orbs of Power
• When nearby teammates cast their Super
• Getting a Finisher kill
• Collecting Ionic Traces, Firesprites, Void Breeches, Stasis Shards, or destroying Strand Tangles

Some armor charges persist until the player consumes them or dies, although certain mods cause armor charges to diminish over time. Temporary armor charges last for only eight seconds, but the "Temporal Dilatation" modification can extend the duration to 15, 18, or 20 seconds, depending on how many copies of the modification are equipped. Armor charges always diminish individually, and the timer resets for each subsequent diminishing charge. There is also a stackable modification that increases the maximum number of armor charges, potentially enhancing both their duration and potency.

Kickstart and Font Armor Charge Mod Builds

Armor charge mods for enhancing attributes and abilities can generally be divided into two categories: Kickstart or Font mods. A notable exception is the "Emergency Reinforcement" modification, which grants players a period of increased damage resistance when their shield breaks. Kickstart mods consume armor charges to immediately replenish ability energy after using a grenade, melee attack, or class ability. These are excellent for use in Destiny 2's PvP activities, as Kickstart mods do not cause armor charges to diminish. This means that players can strategically save and utilize them.

The "Font" category of armor charge mods provides players with an increase in their character's attributes, typically resulting in faster cooldowns for abilities and supers. This includes agility, resilience, and recovery. However, unlike Kickstart mods, Font mods have a time limit and cause armor charges to diminish over time. Font armor charge mods grant a total of approximately 30, 50, or 60 points for a specific attribute, depending on the number of stacked mods. The key to maximizing the use of Font mods is to equip them for attributes that are not already at 100, as values above that threshold provide no benefit. In comparison to Kickstart mods, Font mods are generally the better choice for restoring abilities when players have multiple uses of a particular ability.

Surge Armor Charge Mod Builds

Surge armor charging mods increase the damage for each of the light and darkness elemental types, as well as kinetic damage. All Surge mods are temporary armor charging mods. Players can stack or combine up to three Surge mods, and the damage bonus is either 10%, 17%, or 22%, depending on how many duplicate mods are equipped. These mods can make a significant difference in endgame content, especially in challenging Nightfall missions and raids in Destiny 2.

Finisher Armor Charge Mod Builds

Another playstyle in Destiny 2 that utilizes armor charges is build constructions with finisher mods. Upon completing a finisher kill, these mods can provide the following benefits:

• Ability energy
• Overshields
• Health regeneration
• Full reload for all weapons
• Orbs of Power
• Special ammo for the whole team

Finisher mods are permanent armor charge mods, and although duplicate mods cannot be stacked, their low mod cost makes it easy to add them to existing armor charge builds based on the player's needs.

Destiny 2 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.