The Ruinous Effigy trace rifle has seen better days inDestiny 2. Once it was an incredible powerful weapon with tremendous DPS potential and a unique and fun mechanic. But thanks to a 25% damage nerf in Season of Arrivals it’s more of a fun weapon with some group clearing ability and little PVP potential.

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Destiny 2 Ruinous Effigy

The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst does redeem this weapon a bit and makes it a little more viable. The grind to obtain it is bearable, but upgrading can be a nightmare. To help players out here’s everything they need to know about what the Ruinous Effigy Catalyst does and where to get it.

What The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst Does

The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst provides the trace rifle with the Deconstruction perk. Deconstruction offers a single, but important benefit:

Players will now be able to kill a target, use the newly created Transmutation Sphere to damage their allies, and receive a nice boost in damage against them. Against weaker enemies, it’s possible to chain kills together, resulting in a veritable ball pit of Transmutation Spheres. Players can also use ads to get damage boosts against bosses making this weapon handy in certain Strikes.

Destiny 2 Transmutation Sphere Being Created

How To Find The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst

The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst is one of the more exciting and annoying Catalysts to hunt for inDestiny 2. It has a chance to drop whenever an enemy isdefeated using a Transmutation Sphere. It doesn’t matter what enemy or what type of game mode is being played.

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Destiny 2 Ruinous Effigy Equinox Ornament

This means players can hunt specifically for the Ruinous Effigy Catalyst because it has a unique trigger. Unfortunately, it isn’t triggered by something mindless like completing Strikes, performing a quest, or defeating enemies in general. The player must kill an enemy using a Transmutation Sphere to have a chance at a Ruinous Effigy dropping.

Upgrading the Ruinous Effigy

Now for the real pain, to upgrade the Ruinous Effigy Catalyst the player mustkill 5,000 enemies with Transmutation Spheres. The process is rather simple, albeit a grueling grind. These enemies can be guardians or PVE enemies, though PVE might be easier given the current nature of the Ruinous Effigy.

It’s also important to note that players cannot get the upgrade via hunting the Eyes of Savathun. This was an option during Season of Arrivals, but is no longer possible post season.

Destiny 2 Guardian Using Transmutation Sphere

Tips For Getting The Ruinous Effigy Catalyst

Fortunately, all thekills obtained in getting the Ruinous Effigy Catalyst will count retroactively towards the 5,000 kills needed to upgrade it. There will still be an incredible grind as it’s unlikely the player will kill more than, say, 1,000 enemies before it appears, but it does help. The best way to farm these 5,000 enemies is theShattered Throne thrall roomwith its infinite spawning of weaker enemies.

To maximize efficiency, and give players something to do in the meantime, it would be beneficial to chase down other Catalysts. A good example would be grinding Heroic or Nightfall Strikes to get thePrometheus Lens Catalyst.

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