How to get the Cloudstrike Exotic Sniper Rifle in Destiny 2

Cloudstrike is an Exotic Sniper Rifle in Destiny 2 that was unlocked following the completion of the Beyond Light expansion’s raid, Deep Stone Crypt. Getting the Cloudstrike Exotic Sniper Rifle is a bit of a grind, but it’s absolutely worth it. This is one of the best Sniper Rifles in the game, and this guide explains how you can get it to add to your arsenal.

Related: All Lightfall campaign missions in Destiny 2

How to find the Cloudstrike Exotic Sniper Rifle in Destiny 2

Before you can even come close, you need to unlock Empire Hunts. This happens once you finish the Beyond Light campaign, at which point you’ll be able to take on missions for the Exo Stranger and Variks. Finish all of those missions, and you’ll be able to play through Variks’ Sabotage missions.

Your next step is to head out and complete the Europa Explorer I and II missions. These require you to kill a lot of enemies, and then you’ll need to tackle an Empire Hunt to kill the powerful enemies required for the various tasks these missions entail. Bosses spawn endlessly at the end of Empire Hunts. So get to the end of one and then kill powerful enemies until you’ve racked up all the kills you need.

Now, with both Sabotage missions completed, you’ll get a new activity called Weekly Empire Hunt. These have a chance of dropping the Cloudstrike Exotic Sniper Rifle. There are a few different difficulties to Weekly Empire Hutts, but the drop rate is pretty consistent across them all.

• Adept – 1180 Power – Rare
• Hero – 1220 Power – Rare
• Legend – 1250 Power – Rare
• Master – 1280 Power – Rare

Make sure you run each Weekly Empire Hunt at the correct Power Level. Otherwise, you’ll end up getting stuck at the start, unable to complete them. The Cloudstrike Exotic Sniper Rifle deals Arc damage that impacts the ground wherever you kill an enemy or when you nail three precision shots off in a row. These deal area-of-effect damage, meaning you can quickly clear out enemies in areas ahead of you if you’re quick. Perfect for raids with long encounters.