Matador 64 Review

Be the bull.

Talent Upgrades Tree

You can see each of the possible perks here. The perks that come with the weapon are random and you can also Reforge it to your liking.
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Weapon Review

The Matador 64 is a Shotgun that can randomly drop from any Crucible playlist as an end-of-match reward. If you see the message at the bottom-left corner of the screen, feel free to shout for joy, as you’ve just been rewarded one of the best Shotguns for PvP.

Still, it’s not all roses for the Matador 64, which seems to have been designed so distinctly for the Crucible that it takes a very specific roll to make it worth using in PvE.

Statistically, the Matador 64 is one of those all-or-nothing Shotguns. It possesses the best-in-class base Impact along with pitiful Rate of Fire.

However, the Matador seems to have been almost designed to spite Felwinter’s, as each of its remaining base statistics is slightly better, including Range, Stability, and Reload Speed. The Magazine Size of 5 is the only one that is lower. You’ll be extremely satisfied with its Range, Stability will be a non-factor due to its low RoF, and the Impact will mean a well-placed shot will do more damage with a single pull of the trigger than basically any other weapon in Destiny.

As the Matador does not come standard with any specific perks, it’s up to you to find out what works best for your playstyle when reforging. The following are our suggestions:

Aggressive Ballistics is the best choice for your barrel selection. The base Range is so high you don’t need the benefits of Field Choke; so long as you go with Reinforced or Rifled Barrel later. If you want something else there, Field Choke or Accurized Ballistics are good calls.

In the first main perk slot you should roll Shot Package, Crowd Control, Rangefinder, or Full Auto. Each of these are worthy, though Crowd Control might be better suited for higher RoF Shotguns. Shot Package is the definitive perk for PvP Shotguns, tightening your buckshot spread. Rangefinder offers a similar boon, but is a little better for potentially hitting two or more mobs in PvE. Crowd Control gives you a helpful damage buff for clearing out stronger foes in PvE, but is probably not the best for PvP. Finally, Full Auto is arguably the best PvE option, increasing your RoF by fully automizing the fire pattern, patching up the only real hindrance to DPS this weapon has.

For your pick-your-own three slot perk-row, if you don’t feel you need the range of Reinforced/Rifled Barrel, you can go with Speed Reload/Flared Magwell to chamber your reserve rounds faster. Otherwise, Lightweight is an all-purpose Agility buff that is never a bad call, and Quickdraw could save your butt for when you’re surprised in close-range in either PvE or PvP.

In the second main perk slot, almost every option is helpful. Battle Runner gives you mobility, which might suit your PvE or PvP needs. Army of One is great for those who rely on frequent special Melee & Grenade, and is preferred over Grenadier for the Shotgun’s easy ability to land unassisted kills. Cascade patches up Matador’s admittedly poor Reload Speed, and is very effective in PvE. Kneepads is a PvP-friendly way to close the distance in CQB Shotgun fights, and may cause your opponent to miss a crucial return fire, especially if they’re using Shot Package. Final Round and Luck in the Chamber are both excellent ways to give you a little extra damage for a single shot.

The downsides of the Matador are almost identical to Felwinter’s Lie. Specifically, it’s not a very versatile weapon. It is designed to hit as hard as possible, but isn’t a great choice for overall DPS in PvE. The 100% damage buff has made even the weakest of Shotguns powerful enough to deliver killing blows to the majority of enemies with just a single blast, and since the spread of Shotguns is minimal (even without Shot Package), you still have to dedicate one shot to one enemy.

To this end, Matador’s Impact is overkill in PvE when not directed toward an on-level Major or Ultra, like a shielded Fallen Captain or Hallowed Knight. In order to maximize your Range for PvP, you’ll also likely want the benefits of Reinforced or Rifled Barrel, and Bungie’s new perks make every boost to one stat a trade-off in another.
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PvE

The only way we recommend taking the Matador into PvE is with the appropriate element and Full Auto. The Rate of Fire, while slightly higher than Felwinter’s, is still so low that you’re going to have a hard time fighting off anything that can survive one shot in close range.

Full Auto doesn’t bring the RoF – and thus DPS –- up to Found Verdict’s standard, but it certainly improves it enough to increase the DPS to serviceable levels. Plus, with the natural Impact of the Matador 64, you’ll only need 3-4 shots at most in most content to bring down even the toughest foes.

When choosing your element, Void might be tempting to deal with Minotaurs, and if you have another Solar or Arc Shotgun, like Found Verdict, this is fine, but otherwise you’re just going to encounter Solar and Arc shields much more often. Wizards and Captains are strafe-happy and a high-priority kill for you and your fireteam, and they don’t do well against Shotguns.
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PvP

In PvP, you can’t do too much better than the Matador. It’s able to hit the maximum base Range for Shotguns and when combined with Shot Package, this is enough to tie with Felwinter’s Lie and the Party Crasher +1 for the longest one-hit kill range in Destiny’s PvP.

With Luck in the Chamber and Final Round available for your last available perk, this distance can effectively be pushed even farther. Kneepads and Battle Runner are a different viable avenue if you plan on charging in, relying on your movement skills to keep you alive.

The sole drawback to the Matador in PvP is its base Rate of Fire, which almost guarantees that any misses mean a death for you, as it takes a comparatively long time to get the next shot in. If you aren’t used to using a slow RoF shotgun, you’ll have to spend some time getting a feel for its quirks. All in all, the Matador 64 gives you everything you’d want in PvP, as long as you practice with it enough.
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Conclusion

It’s nearly perfect for PvP. The Matador 64 is among the best of the best when it comes to high Impact, low RoF Shotguns, delivering exactly what you’d expect from this archetype. For this reason, it isn’t ideally suited to the frenzy of PvE, where your Found Verdict or other high RoF Shotgun outclasses it, but it can still hold its own if you get it the right perks.

Thankfully, it’s exactly what the doctor ordered for surgical PvP marksmanship. If you can get a feel for its effective range with Shot Package, and time your shots just right, you’ll have a weapon that will cause more than its fair share of rage in the Crucible. Olé.

For PvP this weapon earns a 9/10 and for PvE a 6.7/10.