How to kill Destiny 2 Tormentors in Lightfall

Destiny 2 Tormentor grab attack killing Warlock

(Image credit: Bungie)

Destiny 2 Tormentors are a fierce enemy type you'll face a lot in Lightfall, and to kill them, you must focus on their weak points. They've probably been causing you some trouble in Destiny 2 Lightfall, whether that's in the Legendary difficulty campaign, or even the Root of Nightmares Raid. Their unique scythe attacks can suppress your abilities and they'll rain down Void projectiles over entire arenas, so Tormentors are almost always a force to be reckoned with. Although, they're hardly invincible if you know where to shoot, so here are all the tips you need to kill Tormentors in Destiny 2 Lightfall with (relative) ease.

Destiny 2 Tormentors explained

Destiny 2 Tormentor weak point comparison image — (Image credit: Bungie)

Bringing down a Tormentor in Destiny 2 is a two-stage process that requires you to shoot several weak points found on the Tormentor’s torso – be aware that only bullets can destroy the initial weak points, so no grenades, abilities, or other explosives from Rocket Launchers and Grenade Launchers will work:

Shoot and destroy the two glowing weak points on the Tormentor’s shoulders. At this stage, these weak points are the only parts of a Tormentor that will even take damage.
Destroying both shoulder weak points to expose a new weak point on the Tormentor’s chest. Hit the chest weak point to deal maximum damage and therefore kill it faster.

Destiny 2 Lightfall mission guides

Destiny 2 Lightfall campaign missions
Destiny 2 Lightfall Headlong
Destiny 2 Desperate Measures

Sounds simple enough but Destiny 2 Tormentors also have many devastating attacks to use against you. They use their massive scythes for close-up melee attacks and can toss out Void projectiles. They can even create a Void vortex in the air that spews out lots of these Void projectiles which can be especially deadly. Exposing their chest weak point also causes them to become much more aggressive (look for the “Torment unleashed!” message in the text feed), charging you down with more melee attacks.

Destiny 2 Tormentor void vortex shooting projectiles — (Image credit: Bungie)

You’ll also want to watch out for their heavy, Void-empowered scythe attacks. These heavy slam attacks create a Void blast that applies the Suppression debuff, preventing you from using any of your Subclass powers. Finally, Tormentors also have a vicious, signature grab attack that is often a one-hit kill – if you get grabbed and you’re not at full health, you’re probably dead.

Destiny 2 Tormentor tips

Destiny 2 Lightfall guardians facing off against a Tormentor — (Image credit: Bungie)

With a method for bringing them down and their possible attacks in mind, here are some quickfire tips for killing Destiny 2 Tormentors:

Keep your distance as Tormentors are deadliest up close, especially when enraged.
Use cover to block Void projectiles, especially from the vortex as this can’t be destroyed.
Immobilize Tormentors with suspending Strand abilities. Non-boss level Tormentors can be affected by the Suspend debuff on Strand Subclasses, giving you an easy opportunity to focus on their chest weak points.
Tormentors are slow at firest, so use this to your advantage early on to destroy their shoulder weak points.
Enraging a Tormentor makes them faster but they won’t be very agile, so jump, bob, and weave through cover to stay safe as they chase you.
Tormentors telegraph their attacks, usually with big swinging motions, leaping into the air, or charging you down, so look out for those so you know when to evade.
Suppressing scythe attacks from Tormentors cancel your Super and jumps. Be careful about when and how you use them as you don’t want a Super cut short or to fall to your death as you’ve lost your jump ability.
Use finishers to quickly kill Tormentors when possible, but be aware that not all Tormentors can be hit with a finisher.