What is Merciless‘ fire rate in Destiny 2?

Merciless is an exotic fusion rifle introduced in Destiny 2‘s Curse of Osiris expansion. It stands out for its unique perk "Conserve Momentum" which increases its rate of fire and impact as it fires continuously at a target. Merciless‘ charge time can go from 533ms all the way down to 393ms at max stacks, allowing it to put out withering continuous damage when fully spun up.

As a Destinty 2 weapons expert and avid Merciless user, I‘m often asked – just how fast can this exotic beast shoot at max power? Let‘s take an in-depth look at everything you need to know about Merciless and its lightning-quick fire rate.

A Brief History of Merciless

Merciless first arrived alongside Curse of Osiris in December 2017 and immediately stood out for its extreme damage capabilities. The ability for a fusion rifle to ramp up its rate of fire was unprecedented at the time. It quickly became a staple for burning down tough PVE bosses.

However, changes to fusion rifles and damage buff stacking hindered Merciless over time. It fell out of favor as other exotic heavies overshadowed it.

That changed in Season of the Seraph when Bungie reworked its perk to dramatically improve its uptime. Now, Merciless could maintain its ramped up fire rate for 8 seconds, allowing it to unload full damage on bosses. This returned Merciless to its former glory as one of the highest DPS exotics in Destiny 2.

How Does Merciless Achieve Insane Fire Rates?

Merciless‘ "Conserve Momentum" perk is what gives it the ability to surpass all other fusion rifles for sustained damage. This is how it works:

• Each time Merciless damages an enemy, it gains a stack of Conserve Momentum, up to 5 stacks maximum.
• Each stack decreases its charge time by 14ms down to a minimum of 393ms at max stacks.
• This buff lasts for 8 seconds and refreshes duration upon damaging enemies.
• Swapping targets resets the buff back to 0 stacks.

This powerful buff empowers Merciless to reach staggering rates of fire once fully spun up. Let‘s see how the numbers work out.

Merciless‘ Base Stats:

With the catalyst, the charge time is improved to 500ms.

Merciless‘ Fire Rate at Max Stacks:

• Max Stacks: 5
• Charge Time Reduction Per Stack: 14ms
• Total Charge Time Reduction: 5 * 14ms = 70ms
• Charge Time at Max Stacks: 500ms – 70ms = 430ms

This allows Merciless to shoot a staggering 2.33 times per second when fully spun up! No other fusion can come close to this rate of fire.

When combined with its high 95 impact, Merciless essentially transforms into a close-range fusion rifle machine gun once fully ramped up.

How Does Merciless‘ Damage Compare to Other Heavies?

We know Merciless can shoot insanely fast, but how does its actual damage output compare against other top tier heavy exotics? Let‘s take a look at some numbers.

Merciless‘ Max Stack Damage Per Bolt

• Base: 18,465
• With Catalyst: 22,158

This damage from its individual bolts is further multiplied by its outrageous fire rate when at max stacks.

Total Damage Against Raid Bosses (based on Light.gg)

We can see against high health raid bosses, a fully ramped up Merciless can match or beat the damage of Whisper of the Worm and other top legendary options. The only weakness is having to ramp up on a target, making it less effective against groups. But for pure single target DPS, a skilled Merciless user can take down bosses at staggering speeds.

Acquiring Merciless & Its Catalyst

To wield this weapon‘s awesome power yourself, here‘s where you can find Merciless and its catalyst:

• Merciless – Random exotic world drop, Xur, Monument to Lost Light
• Catalyst – Random Nightfall drop, maxes out stability

The catalyst is definitely worth pursuing to improve the charge time and stability.

Once you have it, you‘ll need to complete 500 kills to unlock the upgraded stats. This can be quickly achieved on groups of red bars to have it masterworked in no time.

Is Merciless Viable in PVP?

With the right playstyle, Merciless can still be deadly in PVP modes like Trials or Iron Banner, but it faces some limitations compared to top legendary fusions:

• Longer base charge time makes it less reliable.
• Takes too long to ramp up against guardians.
• Better options like Main Ingredient have more consistency.
• Small mag size limits multikills potential.

A skilled player can still make it work, but Main Ingredient and Plug One simply outclass it in Crucible. Merciless shines when it can fully spin up against tankier targets in PVE.

Conclusion

The bottom line – when spun up, Merciless boasts a staggering 430ms charge time, allowing it to spit out over 2 bolts per second to annihilate high health bosses. This unmatched rate of fire combined with high impact ammo return Merciless to its rightful place among the top DPS exotics.

While legendary fusions are better suited for PVP, every Guardian should have this unique beast in their back pocket for unleashing fury on strikes, dungeons, and raids. I hope this overview gave you a better understanding of what makes Merciless such a lethal addition to any arsenal. Let me know if you have any other questions!