Destiny 2 · Subclass Guide · Monument of Triumph

Strand

The weave element. Strand turns the room into your puppet — Suspend packs in mid-air, fray them with Unravel and Sever, then mop up with Tangles, Threadlings and a coat of Woven Mail. One element, all three classes — this page is the cross-class map; per-class full builds live in the class guides. Built on the Monument baseline, Destiny 2's final content sandbox; these are settled recommendations, not a rotating tier list.

Element

StrandDarkness · control / weave

Classes

3Broodweaver · Berserker · Threadrunner

Verbs

Suspend → UnravelSever · Tangle · Woven Mail

Control supers

Needlestorm+ Silkstrike · Bladefury

Patch

9.7.0.3Last gameplay patch

00 · Read This First

What Strand actually is

Strand is crowd-control that disarms the room and then dismantles it — lock a pack in place with Suspend, weaken it with Unravel and Sever, and let Tangles and Threadlings do the cleanup while Woven Mail keeps you standing.

What wins fights

Three jobs, run in a loop:

Lock it down — Suspend lifts and traps targets; Sever cuts their outgoing damage so a frozen pack can't hurt you.
Fray it — Unravel turns final blows into spreading Strand explosions; Tangles are throwable orb bombs that detonate the cluster.
Sustain & feed — Woven Mail is rolling damage resist, and Threadlings are seeking minions that mop the survivors.

What old guides get wrong

Several pre-9.7.0 assumptions are dead. Treat anything older as suspect:

Strand kits carry 4th Aspects, and Slicewire is a Strand grenade.
Ability cooldown cap moved 190 → 125, and bosses now give -60% super energy from damage dealt.

Control

Suspend is the headline. You don't race for kills — you remove the threat first, lifting a whole pack out of the fight so it can't shoot back, then kill at leisure. Sever stacks on top, gutting whatever survives.

Detonate

Strand is the chain-explosion element. Unravel final blows spread to a fray rounds; Tangles are throwable bombs. Pop one node and the whole woven cluster comes apart.

Sustain

Woven Mail turns aggression into armor. Rolling damage resist plus seeking Threadlings means you push into a suspended pack instead of retreating — the neutral game holds the line between detonations.

Monument baseline: last gameplay patch Update 9.7.0.3 (2026-07-07). Update 9.7.0.4 (2026-07-28) shipped without notes; Update 9.7.0.5 (2026-10-07) is an anti-cheat back-end fix only. Checked 2026-10-08. Only claims on Bungie's active Known Issues list are flagged inline. Full per-class builds live in the Warlock, Titan and Hunter class guides; the Light+Dark blend is in Prismatic; stats live in Armor 3.0; the build loop is wired up in Buildcrafting.

01 · Verb Glossary

The Strand keywords

Every Strand build is a sentence built from these words. Learn the verbs and the fragment/aspect text reads itself.

SuspendLift · trap · control

The core control verb. Targets are lifted into the air and held, unable to act, while taking ticking damage. Suspend a pack and the fight is effectively paused. Stuns Unstoppable Champions.

UnravelSpreading detonation

An unraveling target's final blows fire seeking Strand threads that detonate and spread Unravel to nearby enemies. The chain-reaction add-clear verb — one unravelled kill cascades through a pack.

SeverDamage debuff

A debuff that makes the target deal less damage to you and the team. Layer it onto a suspended pack and even what slips free hits like wet paper. The defensive verb.

TangleThrowable orb bomb

A green orb spawned when you defeat a suspended/severed/unravelled target. Shoot or throw it for an AoE explosion (and it can suspend on detonation with the right aspect). The throwable bomb.

Woven MailDamage resist

A flat damage-resistance buff (stronger vs minor combatants) you keep refreshed by grabbing Tangles or via aspects. The Strand survivability backbone — armor woven on the fly.

ThreadlingsSeeking minions

Little woven creatures that seek out and attack nearby enemies. Spawned by perched grenades, kills and aspects; they finish the survivors a suspend/unravel loop leaves behind. The Strand pets.

02 · The Three Classes

Strand, per class

Same element, three identities. Each leans on a different verb.

Strand · Warlock

BroodweaverClass ability · Rift

Super: Needlestorm
Leans on: Threadlings / Unravel

The Threadling engine. Needlestorm fires a volley of woven needles that burst into a swarm of Threadlings. Signature aspects: Weaver's Call (cast Rift to release perched Threadlings), Weavewalk (enter a defensive woven state), and Mindspun Invocation (supercharges your Strand grenade and melee).

Identity is the Rift — Broodweaver builds bank perched Threadlings, then dump them on Rift cast for a seeking-minion flood. The reliable add-shredder pick.

Strand · Titan

BerserkerClass ability · Barricade

Super: Bladefury
Leans on: Woven Mail / Sever

The frenzied bruiser. Bladefury grows Strand claws for a roaming heavy-melee super. Signature aspects: Into the Fray (destroying a Tangle or casting your Super gives nearby allies Woven Mail, and Woven Mail speeds melee regeneration) and Drengr's Lash (Barricade fires a suspending wave). Frenzied Blades is the multi-charge melee.

The bread-and-butter loop is Banner of War: a melee, finisher or Sword kill raises the banner; kills by you and nearby allies charge it; it pulses healing and boosts melee and Sword damage. Slam, sever, sustain.

Strand · Hunter

ThreadrunnerClass ability · Dodge

Super: Silkstrike
Leans on: Grapple / Tangle

The mobility / Tangle class. Silkstrike is a rope-dart roaming super that swings through packs. Signature aspects: Threaded Specter (Dodge leaves a decoy that detonates into Threadlings) and Ensnaring Slam (slam from the air to suspend a pack).

The hook is Grapple — fling to a Tangle, build Grapple melee charges, and chain mobility into suspends. Cyrtarachne's Facade grants Woven Mail on grapple, turning the playstyle tanky. Hit-and-run control.

03 · Fragments

The "Thread of …" pool

Strand fragments are all Threads. Your two equipped Aspects set how many fragment slots you get, and many Threads carry a stat bonus or penalty — so picking fragments is also picking stats. Below are the staples.

Thread of Warding

Picking up an Orb of Power grants Woven Mail — the easiest survivability rider.

Thread of Fury

Taking damage while Woven Mail is up returns melee energy — feeds aggressive play.

Thread of Generation

Dealing damage generates grenade energy — the engine that keeps Tangles and Threadlings flowing.

Thread of Continuity

Suspend, Sever and Unravel last longer — stretches every control window.

Thread of Rebirth

Strand weapon kills can create a Threadling — refills the swarm.

Thread of Ascent

Activating your grenade or class ability reloads and boosts weapon handling — air/reposition tech.

Thread of Mind

Defeating Severed targets returns class-ability energy — feeds Rift / Dodge / Barricade.

Thread of Evolution

Threadlings deal more damage and travel further — the Broodweaver damage rider.

Thread of Transmutation

Defeating a target with Woven Mail active spawns a Tangle — closes the loop.

How to read slots: Strand gives a fixed fragment pool, but how many you can slot is decided by your two Aspects — some Aspects grant more fragment sockets than others. Stack the stat riders deliberately (e.g. a Thread that adds Health if you want survivability). Prismatic does not use Threads — it has its own Facet pool, covered in the Prismatic guide.

03b · Wiring It Up

Stats, mods & the loop

A Strand build is never carried by the exotic alone — the loop only closes when stats, mods and fragments push the same way. The full stat math lives in Armor 3.0 and the wiring walkthrough in Buildcrafting; here's the Strand-specific shape.

The mod layer

Set armor mods before tuning stats — a lot of the loop lives here:

Siphon (helmet) — Strand weapon kills make Orbs of Power; pairs with Thread of Warding for Woven Mail.
Firepower / Heavy Handed (arms) — Orbs on grenade / melee kills, which your suspend loop produces constantly.
Bomber / Outreach / Distribution (class item) — ability energy on class-ability use, for Rift / Dodge / Barricade cadence.
Strand Surge (legs) — bonus weapon damage on the weeks Strand is the featured surge.

Stats by build shape

Translate the loop into the 9.7.0 stat system:

Threadling / Broodweaver builds → grenade-leaning archetype for faster perched-swarm uptime.
Banner / Berserker sustain → Health + melee so Woven Mail and Banner of War stay topped.
Grapple / Threadrunner → Class so Grapple and Dodge come back fast.
Don't dump Class — every Strand class spends class-ability energy to keep the control loop alive.

Cooldown reality check: with the cap moved 190 → 125 and bosses giving -60% super energy from damage, you can no longer brute-force a single mega-stat — layered ability regen (Thread of Generation, Thread of Mind, Bomber mods) beats one tall spike.

04 · Builds

One build per class

A starter Strand build for each class — super → aspects → fragments → exotic → armor archetype → weapons. Full versions live in each class guide.

Warlock · Broodweaver

Threadling Swarm · Swarmers / Necrotic

Best add clearPvE

SuperNeedlestorm

ExoticSwarmers (legs)

AspectsWeaver's Call · Mindspun Invocation

ClassEmpowering / Healing Rift

FragmentsEvolution · Rebirth · Generation · Mind

WeaponsStrand primary w/ Hatchling

How it plays: Perch Threadlings via grenade and weapon kills, then cast Rift to release the swarm (Weaver's Call); Swarmers makes destroyed Tangles spawn extra Threadlings, and Evolution makes each one hit harder. Needlestorm is a panic-button add wipe. Armor: grenade/Health-leaning archetype · push Class for Rift cadence.

Titan · Berserker

Banner of War Loop · Synthoceps

Sustain DPSPvE

SuperBladefury

ExoticSynthoceps (or Abeyant Leap)

AspectsInto the Fray · Drengr's Lash

ClassDrengr's suspending Barricade

FragmentsWarding · Fury · Continuity · Transmutation

WeaponsStrand weapon for Tangles/Sever

How it plays: A melee, finisher or Sword kill raises Banner of War; kills by you and nearby allies charge it, and it pulses healing and boosts melee and Sword damage; Into the Fray keeps Woven Mail rolling, and Drengr's Barricade suspends approaching packs. Synthoceps amps melee. Armor: melee/Health-leaning archetype · build for melee uptime.

Hunter · Threadrunner

Grapple Suspend · Cyrtarachne's Facade

Best controlPvE

SuperSilkstrike

ExoticCyrtarachne's Facade (helmet)

AspectsEnsnaring Slam · Threaded Specter

ClassMarksman's / Gambler's Dodge

FragmentsWarding · Continuity · Generation · Ascent

WeaponsStrand special + Tangle synergy

How it plays: Grapple to a Tangle for a melee charge, then Ensnaring Slam to suspend the pack mid-air; Cyrtarachne's Facade hands you Woven Mail on every grapple so you dive in tanky. Threaded Specter drops a decoy that bursts into Threadlings on your Dodge. Premier crowd control. Armor: Class/mobility-leaning archetype · keep Grapple online.

PvE vs PvP: In PvE the verdicts above hold — Strand is a top control element and the Banner, Threadling and Grapple-Suspend builds are reference-tier add management. In PvP Strand's job is movement, suspension, and survivability: Suspend and Sever are duel-enders that lift or defang a pushing opponent, Grapple opens off-angles and mobility kills, Woven Mail is the tanky neutral-game draw, and Threadlings are chip pressure rather than wipe tools. The "best" tags above are PvE-first; with the sandbox settled on the Monument baseline, those values are stable. → PvP: Crucible hub · PvP builds

Other Strand exotics worth knowing

The builds above are starters, not the only answers. A few class exotics define their own Strand loops — pick by what the activity needs.

Warlock options

Necrotic Grip — melee poison that spreads on kills, lethal with a Strand swarm. Mataiodoxía is a chest exotic that supercharges Arcane Needle: needles pierce Barrier shields and defeated targets emit chaining suspend detonations. Pick Swarmers when you want the Threadling flood, Necrotic when you want spreading melee poison.

Titan options

Abeyant Leap — extra suspending projectiles off Drengr's Lash plus Woven Mail; a near-unkillable control helmet... legs. Wishful Ignorance for Frenzied Blades melee damage. Synthoceps leans burst, Abeyant leans control.

Hunter options

Star-Eater Scales — feed orbs to overcharge Silkstrike for a bigger rope-dart super. The Fundamentals / Mothkeeper's Wraps for utility. Cyrtarachne for tanky grapple, Star-Eaters for raw super ceiling.

Take it to a full build → these are starters; the complete Monument-era builds live on the class pages — Warlock Strand (Threadling swarm · Swarmers) · Titan Strand (Banner of War · Synthoceps) · Hunter Strand (Grapple-Suspend · Cyrtarachne's Facade).

05 · The Loop

How the engine cycles

Every Strand build, stripped to its skeleton, is the same control cycle. Grapple in, suspend the pack, fray them with Unravel and Sever, harvest Tangles and Threadlings, stay coated in Woven Mail, repeat. The diagram is the whole element on one page.

Strand ability loopGrapple → Suspend → Fray → Spawn → Sustain

Control step Spawn step Detonation

Where it breaks: if the loop stalls, you're usually missing fuel (no Tangle source — slot Thread of Transmutation) or control duration (suspends fading too fast — slot Thread of Continuity). Wire the full version in the Buildcrafting guide.

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