Dead Man’s Tale, if you haven’t guessed, is one of the most powerful primary weapons in the game. It is the best and not one of the most exotic primaries. This scout rifle comes with random rolls, so you can run Presage every week to get the exact roll that you desire. These god rolls will help you decide which perks you should chase.
The Weaknesses in Dead Man’s Tale
You’ll be looking for weapon perks to increase damage output and strengthen the weapon’s weaknesses. Dead Man’s Tale is no exception and there are two areas in need of improvement.
- Slow Reload This weapon reloads one round at a given time, instead of using a full magazine. This allows for slower reloads.
- Low stability – The base stability of DMT is 37, which is very low. It can be difficult to fire precise shots to proc Cranial Spike because you will be hip-firing this weapon (due to the catalyst).
We are looking for perks to improve stability and reload speed, so you can get back in the fight quicker.
Dead Man’s Tale – PvE Godroll
- Corkscrew Rifling: +5 to range, stability, & handling
- Ricochet Rounds: +5 to range & +10 to stability
- 3rd Column
- Vorpal Weapon: For a brief period, final blows can increase mobility, weapon range, and handling.
- Subsistence: When you defeat targets, you can partially reload the magazine from your reserves.
- Hand-Laid Stock: +10 to stability
For your third-column perk, Subsistance and Vorpal Weapon are great choices. The best perk for you will depend on the type of PvE activity and the role that you play in it.
Vorpal Weapon is a good perk to use if your boss damage is the main focus of your Dead Man’s Tale. Subsistence is the best perk if you are more focused on clearing adds. Cranial Spike, DMT’s exotic perk is the reason.
Cranial Spike – Chaining precision hits gives bonus damage and speeds up reload speed.
This damage buff will allow you to chew through trash mobs like a pro and constantly practice Subsistence. Since you will always have full ammo, or close to it, after every kill, you won’t need to reload.
While some might argue Outlaw is better, Subsistence can be triggered on all kills. This gives you some flexibility so that you don’t get punished for aiming a bit off.
Dead Man’s Tale: PvP Godroll
- Corkscrew Rifling: +5 to range, stability, & handling
- Ricochet Rounds: +5 to range & +10 to stability
- 3rd Column
- Final blows: Killing Wind grants increased mobility, weapon range, handling, and control for a brief period
- Outlaw: Reload time is greatly reduced when precision kills.
- Hand-Laid Stock: +10 to stability
Vorpal Weapon is a perk that some players use to counter enemy super players. However, the uptime of this perk is very limited due to its conditional usage. Because they activate after every defeat, perks such as Killing Wind, Outlaw or Subsistance will give you much more time.
It’s a toss up between Outlaw and Killing Wind for the 3rd column perk. Outlaw is Outlaw, but Killing Wind makes Dead Man’s Tale more efficient at its job. It’s still an excellent perk even after the nerf and has tons of synergy to DMT. Precision shots should be your primary focus.
You can however equip a Scout Rifle mod to speed up your reload speed so that you don’t need Outlaw.
Recap
Dead Man’s Tale is a must-have if you don’t already have it. This is a powerful primary weapon that can be used in a fun and rewarding way. These weapon perk combinations can be your god roll Dead Man’s Tale, which will allow you to dominate any activity.
Don’t forget. These god rolls depend on your completion of the At Your Fingertips Mission, which will give the catalyst for Dead Man’s Tale. Although it might seem impossible to do a solo Presage on heroic, you can quickly find a fireteam and get your Dark Forged Trigger. The Catalyst is an amazing weapon by itself, but it’s even more powerful with the Catalyst.