Badlander is a Solar rapid-fire frame shotgun that has been a recurring weapon in Destiny 2’s loot pool, often available through world drops and specific seasonal activities. As a classic example of its archetype, it remains a popular choice for players who favor a relentless, close-quarters playstyle.
This shotgun excels in aggressive, burst-damage situations. It truly shines in PvE for melting major enemies and dealing high damage to mini-bosses thanks to its full-auto frame and perk options like Threat Detector, Auto-Loading Holster, and the potent Trench Barrel, which synergizes perfectly with melee-focused builds. Titans running Solar Hammer builds or Synthoceps, and any subclass that encourages getting up close and personal, can make devastating use of it. In PvP, the weapon is a high-risk, high-reward option—its rapid fire rate can allow for quick follow-up kills, but it demands precise positioning and shot placement to be consistently effective.
From this guide, you will know:
- How good is the Badlander Shotgun
- How to get Badlander
- Stats and Perks of Badlander
- Badlander God Roll
- If Badlander craftable
If you enjoy a fast, in-your-face gameplay loop and want a reliable Solar shotgun that specializes in high burst damage, the Badlander is a solid and accessible weapon to have in your arsenal.
Is Badlander Shotgun Good?
Short answer: Situational. Badlander is 
B-tier in PvE and 
C-tier in PvP, heavily dependent on a specific god roll to compete.
Badlander Tier list:
- PvE: B-tier. Can jump to A-tier for burst damage phases with the perfect roll (Assault Mag + Trench Barrel).
- PvP: C-tier. Outclassed by Aggressive and Precision Frame shotguns due to its wider spread and inconsistent one-hit-kill range.
Why PvE B-tier: Its value comes almost entirely from the Trench Barrel perk. Landing a melee hit immediately before unloading significantly boosts your damage against majors and mini-bosses. Paired with its Rapid-Fire Frame, you can dump this empowered burst very quickly. However, it is easily outclassed by newer craftable or unique shotguns in terms of total damage and ammo economy.
Why PvP C-tier: The Rapid-Fire Frame has a faster fire rate for clean-up kills, but its one-hit-kill range is shorter and less consistent than the top-tier options. You will often lose a straight-up duel against a player using an Aggressive Frame shotgun. Its niche is as a defensive “swap-to” weapon for a quick two-tap, but it is not a reliable primary shotgun for aggressive play.
How to Get Badlander in Destiny 2
Badlander is a Solar rapid-fire frame shotgun that has been reintroduced to Destiny 2’s world loot pool. Unlike a limited-time event weapon, it is not going away, but its drop sources are less focused, requiring a different farming approach.
Step 1: Engage with Core Playlists
The Badlander is part of the World Loot Pool. This means your primary sources are engrams and reputation rewards from Vanguard Ops, Crucible, and Gambit matches. Play these core activities to earn Legendary engrams that have a chance to decode into the Badlander.
Step 2: Level Up with Vendors
As you earn Vanguard, Crucible, and Gambit reputation, you will rank up with their respective vendors (Zavala, Shaxx, and the Drifter). Each rank-up package you claim from them has a chance to contain a Badlander. This is one of the more reliable methods to target this weapon.
Step 3: Focus Umbral Engrams
Check the Umbral Engram focusing options at the HELM. Sometimes, general world weapon focusing is available (such as the “World Weapon” focus at the Sonar Station). If such an option is present, it can be a great way to convert Umbral Engrams into a chance at the Badlander.
Step 4: Utilize Targeted Farms
The fastest way to target-farm the Badlander is by spending your Vanguard, Crucible, and Gambit Engrams directly at their vendors. When you have engrams saved up, you can focus them for a chance at specific world weapons, significantly increasing your odds over pure random drops.
Fastest Way to get Badlander:
- Play a large volume of Vanguard Ops, as they are generally the fastest core activity.
- Save your Vanguard Engrams.
- Spend Vanguard Engrams at Commander Zavala to focus on world weapons, hoping for the Badlander.
- Repeat until you land a strong roll (e.g., Assault Mag + Auto-Loading Holster + Trench Barrel for PvE).
Badlander Farming Tips:
- Run Vanguard Ops: These are typically the most straightforward and quickest core activities to grind. Using a build that speeds up add-clear will make your runs more efficient.
- Use Prosperity Ghost Mods: Equip a Ghost mod like “Vanguard Prosperity” to give yourself a chance at earning additional Legendary gear upon activity completion.
- Double-Dip with Bounties: Grab Vanguard, Crucible, and Gunsmith bounties before you start your farming session. You’ll earn reputation, experience, and materials while you hunt for the shotgun.
- Patience is Key: As a world drop weapon, the Badlander cannot be target-farmed as easily as a seasonal weapon. It requires persistence and taking advantage of all sources that pull from the world loot pool.
Quick Summary
- Badlander is a world drop, available year-round from core activities.
- Best way: Farm Vanguard Ops with a Prosperity mod → Save Vanguard Engrams → Focus them for world weapons at Zavala.
- Focus perks: Look for a PvE combo like Auto-Loading Holster and Trench Barrel.
- There is no time limit to acquire it, so you can farm for it at your own pace.
Perks of Badlander Shotgun
Column 3 Perks
- Threat Detector: An excellent choice for a shotgun. It significantly boosts handling and reload speed when enemies are close—exactly where you’ll be using this weapon. This makes it feel snappier and more responsive in the heat of battle.
- Auto-Loading Holster: The top-tier utility perk for PvE. It automatically reloads the weapon when stowed after a short time, perfect for a “swap-to” weapon used for burst damage against a major enemy before switching back to your primary.
- Field Prep: Provides larger ammo reserves and faster reloads while crouched. A solid option for general play if you need more ammo for long encounters.
- Pulse Monitor: A niche survivability perk that automatically reloads a portion of the magazine when your health becomes critical. Can be a lifesaver in difficult content.
Column 4 Perks
- Trench Barrel: The standout PvE damage perk. Landing a melee hit on a target grants increased damage and handling for a short duration. This synergizes perfectly with the Rapid-Fire Frame, allowing you to unload a massive burst of empowered damage into a major or mini-boss. This is the reason to farm this gun for PvE.
- One-Two Punch: A powerful alternative for specific melee-focused builds. Hitting every pellet of a blast with this perk active enhances your next melee attack. It’s a build-defining perk for certain Titan and Hunter setups.
- Vorpal Weapon: Provides consistent bonus damage against bosses, mini-bosses, and Guardians in their Super. A reliable, no-fuss damage option.
- Rampage: Provides a stackable damage boost after each kill. Useful for add-clear, but shotguns are typically used for single-target damage, making it less optimal than the other choices.
Origin Traits
- The Badlander is part of the World Loot Pool and does not have a unique, dedicated Origin Trait. As such, its performance is based solely on its intrinsic frame and selected perks.
Quick Take
PvE God Roll:
- Barrel: Barrel Shroud (for handling) or Full Choke.
- Magazine: Assault Mag (increases fire rate and stability) or Tactical Mag.
- Column 3: Auto-Loading Holster (for effortless weapon swapping) or Threat Detector (for responsiveness).
- Column 4: Trench Barrel (for maximum burst damage against powerful enemies).
PvP Consideration:
While outclassed by other archetypes, a serviceable roll would focus on consistency.
- Perks: Threat Detector for handling and a damage perk like Rampage or even Trench Barrel for securing a follow-up kill.
Note: Its Rapid-Fire Frame makes it less forgiving than Aggressive or Precision Frame shotguns in the current PvP meta.
Badlander God Roll
The Badlander’s value comes from its high burst damage potential and utility within the Rapid-Fire Frame shotgun archetype. It excels as a specialized tool for burning down powerful enemies at close range. Let’s look at what makes its PvE and PvP rolls worth considering.
Badlander PvE God Roll
In PvE, your focus for a shotgun is typically single-target burst damage against Majors or mini-bosses, with utility perks to support that role. The Badlander has a clear, top-tier combo for this purpose.
- Auto-Loading Holster – The ultimate utility perk for a special weapon. It automatically reloads the weapon after a short time spent stowed. This allows you to swap to your Badlander, unleash its full magazine, and immediately swap back to your primary without manually reloading, maximizing your damage uptime.
- Trench Barrel – The standout damage perk for this weapon. Hitting an enemy with a melee attack grants a significant damage and handling boost for a short duration. This synergizes perfectly with the Rapid-Fire Frame, allowing you to unload a massive burst of empowered damage.
- Assault Mag – The best magazine perk, as it increases the weapon’s rate of fire, allowing you to dump your high-damage burst even faster.
- Threat Detector – A strong alternative to Auto-Loading Holster. When enemies are close—which they always are when using a shotgun—it provides a substantial boost to handling and reload speed, making the weapon feel much more responsive.
Together, these perks create a powerful “swap-to” weapon. The premier PvE roll is Auto-Loading Holster + Trench Barrel. This combination lets you melee a high-value target, empty your magazine for maximum burst damage, then stow the weapon to have it ready for the next engagement without downtime. For a more active playstyle, Threat Detector + Trench Barrel pairs well for faster ready speed and reloads in the thick of combat.
Badlander PvP God Roll
In the Crucible, the Rapid-Fire Frame is a niche pick. It sacrifices one-hit-kill range of Aggressive or Precision Frame shotguns for a faster fire rate, making it better for quick follow-up shots.
- Threat Detector – The best-in-slot perk for Column 3 in PvP. The handling boost is crucial for winning quick, close-range engagements, allowing you to draw and aim down sights faster when an opponent is near.
- Rampage – A strong choice for securing multi-kills. After a kill, the damage boost can reduce the number of pellets required to kill your next target, making follow-up kills more forgiving.
- Pulse Monitor – A niche survivability perk. In the chaotic fray of close-quarters combat, having your shotgun automatically reload when your shield breaks can sometimes save you.
- One-Two Punch – A highly specialized option for melee-focused builds. If you can land all pellets, it empowers your melee for a potential one-two combo.
For barrels and magazines, you must prioritize range and handling. Look for Barrel Shroud or Smallbore for the barrel, and Accurized Rounds for the magazine. A Handling or Range Masterwork is ideal. The goal is to maximize consistency within the limited effective range.
Can you craft Badlander?
You cannot craft the Badlander. It does not drop with Deepsight (red borders) and has no pattern to extract, so there is no way to craft a personalized version at the Enclave.
The Badlander is a world drop, meaning it can randomly appear from various sources throughout the year. You can earn copies as random rewards from completing activities in the Vanguard Ops, Crucible, and Gambit playlists. It also decrypts from Legendary Engrams found in the world and can be a potential reward from ranking up with core activity vendors like Commander Zavala, Lord Shaxx, and the Drifter.
This means if you want a specific god roll, you will need to engage extensively with the core playlists and hope for a lucky drop, or use Vanguard, Crucible, or Gambit Engrams to focus on world weapon rolls when that option is available. Unlike a seasonal weapon, there is no time limit to farm for it, but its drop sources are less focused.
Conclusion
The Badlander is a classic Rapid-Fire Frame shotgun that serves as a solid, if specialized, tool in Destiny 2’s vast arsenal. It brings high burst damage potential with Trench Barrel and excellent utility through perks like Auto-Loading Holster. In PvE, it feels potent and responsive when used as a “swap-to” weapon for melting Majors and mini-bosses. In PvP, it’s outclassed by other archetypes, but its rapid fire rate can be forgiving for securing clean-up kills.
Because it’s a world drop and not craftable, acquiring a good roll is a matter of patience and luck rather than a focused grind. Players who enjoy melee-centric builds, need a reliable Solar shotgun for their loadout, or simply appreciate the feel of a full-auto shotgun should keep an eye out for a strong roll. If you already possess top-tier PvE shotguns like the Ikelos_SG_v1.0.3 or a crafted Without Remorse, you can safely skip it — but for many Guardians, a god-rolled Badlander remains a worthy and effective weapon to have in your vault.
