Best Weapons Right Now

This page features the best weapons currently in the game. All Special Weapons and their various versions can be found on this page. Note that most of the weapons on this page are only available in the bundle shop or Trade Fair shop (so requires a real money investment). Some of them might have been rewards in the Survival Pass, Season Token campaigns or in the Guild Wars shop, but if you missed them then the bundle shop is your only option (or wait for them to possibly appear in later Survival Passes / Guild Shop). None of the weapons mentioned here can drop from crates or show up in the Black Market.
The 6.13 update brought equipment remodeling, which means you can change traits on weapons. This means there is less need to look for a weapon with the exact correct traits, and instead you can focus on getting the right weapon and then reroll the best traits for you onto it.
Note that this page ranks weapons for general gameplay. For PvP missions (GW and Outpost) other weapons might be better, so check out the sections on GW and Outpost for gear recommendations for those missions.
This page was latest updated on Aug 28 2024.
== Best Weapon for Assaults ==
#The Golden Devourer with wide spread, concussion and crippling. At 6 tiles it has almost the same range as the CAR, but with wide spread it has a wider cone. It also has a special functionality of having a chance to stun targets next to you, if you don't hit them on the normal attack. That functionality is rather niche but can be handy in some situations and with 60% base chance and if you can get 60+ % lucky it's almost guaranteed to kick in. The charge attack is a bonus attack and can be placed anywhere on the ground. For Mercer it's better to reroll concussion for Lucky.
#The Champion Assault Rifle (“CAR”). The weapon comes in a few different skins and setups, but the one with silver wide arc, gold concussion and gold crippling is considered the best. This is a purchase only weapon. The CAR fires in a relatively narrow cone, but its extreme long-range (7 tiles) means you can hit a huge number of walkers, and it has a bonus attack, meaning you can get three attacks per turn on Mercer if you also have Yumiko in the team. You can't find that kind of firepower anywhere else. Another contender for best is the Champion Assault Rifle: Code Orange version, which has gold Lucky instead of Concussion. This weapon was a reward in the Survival Pass of autumn 2023. As this weapon lacks concussion, it won't stun for long, but in the hands of Mercer it will further increase the chances of Men-At-Arms activating and hopefully kill all walkers instead of even having to worry about stunning.
#Nat's Screamstick. This is basically a improved Decimator and has a bonus charge attack. The Screamstick hits in a circular area, allowing hitting behind walls (this can be dangerous if there are exploders or barrels on the map) and behind Metalheads. Additionally, the main target takes some extra damage and its overall damage increases slightly with every kill (up to 45% extra damage). The basic version of this was released in a campaign but lacks good traits. In August 2024, a version with silver extra range, crippling and concussion was released, making it the best version currently. Of the orginal Decimators, a new Decimator (with the GP skin) was released in the bundle shop in Jan 2024 with extra range (2 tiles) and crippling. The Decimator, however, lacks a bonus charge attack which is a serious drawback.
#The Bulldozer, with Lucky, High Powered and Ensnare. The bulldozer can push enemies, which can be useful in some scenarios. The Bulldozer is the weapon of choice for assault PvP defenders. Especially with gold High powered it can be a real pain in GW.
#Rick's Assault Rifle and Rosita's Assault Rifle (“RAR” or “RIAR”). These have the same traits as the CAR rifles above (but no bonus attack), but with a much shorter range. These rifles have been guild shop rewards and should not be confused with regular crate weapons with the same names. GW Season 24 (Jan-Feb 2024) also had the Silenced MP5 Assault Rifle, which is a copy of Rosita's Assault Rifle. Note that it's not silenced in the game, even though you could believe that based on the name. These are good options for F2P players but a big step down compared to the weapons mentioned above.
#Other options are the Obliterator, which is a hybrid between the CAR and the Decimator, but not really better than either.
==Best Weapon for Scouts==
#The Pouvoir Flag. This is the only weapon that can cause confusion, a powerful mechanic. It has the spear type hit arc, meaning you can hit up to 3 enemies, and it has guaranteed interrupt on overwatch, which also is extremely useful. Finally, it has a bonus charge attack, allowing two attacks in a turn, unlike regular scout weapons.
#Mercer's Axe. Mercer's Axe can hit two enemies, has a bonus charge attack, and guaranteed interrupt on overwatch. The most common version has tactical, which allows for a good amount of choice for armor selection. GW Season 24 had a new version with Lucky, Ensnare and Razor, which is the best version of this axe as you can root targets on the charge attack.
#Tenderizer. The charge attack of the Tenderizer roots enemies, and if razor kicks in it can also root on normal attacks. This is quite useful, but requires that you can get charged reliably, so works best in combination with Connie lead. No interrupt on overwatch.
#The Last Word. This has a wide 5-arc space, and the charge attack is a bonus attack which also stuns the enemies. Moreover, if an attack is made before moving, you gain a quick move. However, it is lacking interrupt on overwatch, so it requires help from teammates or a charge attack the previous turn to really work effectively. There are several versions; one good one has silver concussion, gold wide arc (meaning it reaches almost all around you) and gold ensnare. There is also one version with silver wide arc, gold interrupt and gold concussion. This version makes up for the missing built-in interrupt (but of course at the cost of some other good trait).
#The Croat's Hook Knife. This weapon is similar to Mercer's Axe, but has no bonus charge attack. Instead, it has a built-in guaranteed swift strike, so if an enemy is killed on the first attack, you will regain an action point. This is much less useful, as it's not always possible to kill the enemy (and can be difficult to estimate beforehand). It does, however, also have the guaranteed interrupt on overwatch.
#Crescent Edge. The Crescent Edge is a good weapon for mid-level play, especially equipped on Huntsman Daryl, as he can prowl and kill walkers quite effectively. It has threat reduction, and as long as walkers are fairly easily killed, it's easy to keep the threat counter at a minimum when using this weapon. However, at higher levels this weapon loses its effectiveness, and at nightmare levels in the challenge the threat counter will fill up too fast for threat reduction to be effective.
#Commonwealth Bayonet Rifle. This is weapon has a Kingdom Spear like normal attack, and an assault weapon like charge attack, which stuns enemies like a regular assault weapon without widespread. This can be useful in some scenarios, but it's really only if you don't have other options to stun (like Warriors with Skeggox/MS, real Assaults or Bruisers), so in reality it's not very useful. Also, the charge attack is a ranged attack so will not get the extra damage from Brain Stab that scouts usually get on their charge attacks, so damage will be much lower than usual. Currently this weapon is only available with sub-par traits, so it's recommended to wait for a version with cripple or ensnare.
#The Bayonet Musket hit two spaces away similar to spears. They have a ranged charge attack (which is not a bonus attack) similar to a hunter's weapon. This is rarely particularly useful as their traits only cause damage (no stun, cripple, fire, or anything) so only makes sense if the charge attack can kill the walkers.
==Best Weapon for Warriors ==
#The Apo CRM Trident. This weapon does massive damage, and can quickly kill high-level targets. It doesn't offer additional attacks like the Skeggox but it compensates through its Apo trait (increasing damage against higher level targets). There's been an event in which players could collect the required tokens for this weapon, but now it's only available in the shop. This weapon pairs perfectly with a high-pink star Michonne, who can make a first normal attack to kill some walkers and activate her Swift Strike, then make a charge attack and finally a third regular attack.
#Ensnare Daryl's Skeggox. Arguably as good as a warrior's weapon could get. This weapon has a massive range, hitting in a 180-degree arc and at 2 spaces range (like the version above). The Skeggox, when combined with the tactical trait, can often hit 4 times per turn (attack before moving, charge attack, extra attack, and one attack on overwatch). This means it can deal out a huge amount of damage and stun all nearby walkers. It also has the guaranteed interrupt, which is super useful to set you up for an attack next round. This has a gold skin but doesn't have a special name. Traits are silver wide arc, gold lucky and gold ensnare. This version is really good for rooting unstunnable walkers like Tanks and Spiked, and thanks to its two-space range you can root them at a distance from you. Note that since it doesn't have Razor or First Strike, you are depending on weakening to be able to stun on the first hit, so your survivor must have weakening for the weapon to work. This is the the objectively best version (with Lucky boosting Ensnare chance) and works especially well on Last Stand. There is also a Bunny's Eggox version, with Ensnare and First Strike. This is basically a hybrid between the Aurora Skeggox and the Lucky Ensnare Skeggox. There is also another Bunny's Eggox version with Razor instead of First Strike. This is mainly useful if you don't have Weakening of a relatively high level.
#Aurora Skeggox. This weapon has the First Strike trait, which will guarantee that any walker not yet damaged will get stunned. It allows you to run forward and stun fresh walkers, or stand next to a spawn point and stun everyone that spawns. Since it doesn't push, it also means walkers will remain tightly packed so you can dish out the maximum amount of damage. Its only weak point is that it can't stop unstunnable walkers, but the 2 space range will still allow a hit + overwatch, so it still is good also against these. Or, have someone else in the team with a push weapon or a rooting weapon if needed, or combine with Magna's Pitfalls or Tyreese's Circles. This weapon works especially well in the Challenge, where you can rush forward against any normal walkers and rely on everyone with full health becoming stunned. This is also the version that does most damage, and First Strike's extra +50% damage can, combined with cookies or other damage boosts, do very high damage.
#Rooting Morning Star. The Morning Star with Ensnare is especially good on maps where you need to push away special walkers like Spikes and Tanks, that can't be stunned. The Ensnare trait, combined with weakening, will almost guarantee that the pushed walker will then be rooted so it can't just walk back the next turn. This weapon works especially well on Last Stand, where you often will camp in a corner and need to push away special walkers.
#Regular Skeggox. The normal Skeggox is also excellent, and can do everything that the Aurora Skeggox does, just in a smaller area.
#Other Morning Stars. The push (and stun if a walker gets pushed into something) is very useful. There are a few different variations, all of which have their uses. The one with interrupt is good on Ezekiel on the final rounds of the challenge, which are full of walkers resistant to other status effects. GP 2024 had a morning star with threat reduction. This is not very useful.
==Best Weapon for Bruisers==
#Apo Burazi Stop Sign Spear. This comes in a few different versions - with a new Apocalyptic version being the best. Look out for ones with silver wide arc are the best, as they hit a huge area in the same way as the Aurora Skeggox. One version has razor, which is probably is the best version, while the GP version is pink and has First Strike instead of razor. Of the non-wide ones, the one with ensnare is the best. It's the only weapon that causes damage based on the target's HP (25% against unstunnable walkers only), which means you can take down those special walkers quickly. This weapon works especially good in the hands of Fighter Rosita, who can hit several times and then retreat. Has guaranteed interrupt.
#CRM Axe. This weapon's main functionality is that it gives extra movement, meaning the bruiser can move like a scout, and you are guaranteed to not be hit by walkers if you run past them. The main target of it's 3-space range is never a bodyshot, so you can be guaranteed to stun any non-stun resistant target. There is also a "Corpse CRM Axe" version with First Strike, allowing guaranteed stun on all three targets, as long as they aren't damaged. This weapon is good for missions with only stunnable walkers and/or missions where you need to move fast.
#Riot Shield. This is good for crowd control and for building walls, as it will herd nearby walkers which were outside the stun radius. In the current meta, bruisers don't play a big role, so this weapon is really useful only in certain scenarios.
#Lucerne Hammer. The hammer has a wide 180 degree arc, meaning you can hit walkers that aren't perfectly lined up. This weapon is especially useful on Outpost and GW PvP attacks.
==Best Weapon for Hunters==
 
#Wrecker Shotgun. This weapon has a wide cone, and can push and root on the charge attack, which is super useful, especially on last stand — as long as you can get charged. There is since June 2024 a bundle version with silver wide arc, gold cripple and incendiary. This is good to slow down approaching walkers, but you can get the same effect with a non-crippling version using Hunter Daryl with a high-level Heirloom. Other versions either have piercing or not. Both are great and have their uses. The piercing one, especially the one with Ensnare & Incendiary, is better for general use, as it can push on normal attacks (when piercing kicks in), while the white one (Commonwealth Ed.) has Lucky instead, which is always useful. Use that one if you can get charged (for example Connie lead), or are using it in PvP where piercing is less needed, otherwise the regular one. There was a St Patricks day version sold with a green skin, which has silver incendiary, gold lucky and gold ensnare. This is a really bad version as you will never activate the Ensnare trait (and charge attacks are automatic root anyway).
#The Orange Blazaguard+. This one was the main reward of the premium survival pass season 19 (June-August 2024). It's a heavily buffed bazooka, with push, no reloading time, overwatch and a charge attack (though not a bonus attack). It has great traits as well, with extra range (8 tiles), crippling and ensnare. As the main target is never a bodyshot, it will always push (and maybe root) the main target, and cripple adjacent targets, while the charge attack will push all targets and probably root them. Additionally, it has a good 60% ignition chance (not affected by lucky). Its only issue is that it does a lot of damage, so in a SMY setup Sasha will often end up killing the target on Yumiko's Firing Squad attack, meaning Mercer doesn't shoot and doesn't get charged.
#Abbey's Tromblon. This rifle has two special functionalities which make it great. First, any target hit within 2 spaces (or one only directly diagonally) will be rooted, which means you can stop all movement from one direction. Second, it has a super long-range charge attack with guaranteed incendiary on the main target, plus adjacent ones can turn on fire. This is useful especially on Last Stand. It also requires only 2 charge points. There is a bundle version called the Tromblon Treat (with a blue/gold skin). This version has cripple instead of Piercing, making it better for crowd control. Another version (with the normal skin) has silver ensnare instead of Destructive, making this the currently best version.
#Burnout Rifle. This rifle has unlimited range (though only 8 spaces when equipped on an outpost / GW defender) and has incendiary, allowing you to hit targets very far away and set them on fire. It doesn't have crippling or other slowing down traits, meaning it's quite a bit less useful for general play, and nowadays, it's pretty purely a GW PvP weapon. The Season 25 GW shop has a version with silver interrupt, which is the best version for PvP, where this weapon mostly is used.
#The Crimson Harpoon Gun, especially the version with incendiary & crippling. Crippling enemies is always useful, and setting them on fire is excellent too. This works especially well together with Mercer, as he can quickly take down the walkers' health to almost zero, and then the fire can finish the job (as fire takes 10% of the target's original HP every turn). A very similar weapon was the special 7 mm Harrier (except it doesn't have a bonus charge attack) which was a GW shop reward.
==Best Weapon for Shooters==
# Blue Vortex Nail Gun / Modified Nail Gun. The Blue Vortex Gun was a reward on the premium survivor pass early 2024, while the identical Modified Nail Gun is a bundle weapon with the same starts but a different skin. It has gold incendiary and crippling, and silver lucky. Additionally it has long range as a special functionality. It also roots targets within 2 spaces, and the charge attack roots its target. Finally, it has a guaranteed interrupt on overwatch. This weapon takes over the throne of shooter weapons from the Savior Handgun, which was a GW reward earlier. The Savior Handgun is similar and almost as good, but doesn't have the root functionality. The Special Someone is similar to the Savior Handgun and can be purchased from the bundle shop, but it has a lower chance of igniting. Note that the Nail Gun can't shoot through Metalheads, so consider still using the Savior Handgun on maps with Metalheads.
#Requiem. This gun is the only shooter weapon which can push. Note, however, that unlike melee weapons it will push some walkers closer to you, if you hit in the middle of a group of walkers. This does reduce its effectiveness somewhat. It does have one extra feature, though, in that overwatch attacks within 3 spaces has a guaranteed push and a very good chance of giving a charge point (60% + lucky). A version with tactical, lucky and cripple was released in the bundle shop in June 2024. Currently it's lacking in range and doesn't have incendiary.
#The Blizzard Pistol (or Sea Stormer skin), with Lucky, High Powered and Crippling. There is also the Pulverizer (or Porcelain skin) with High Powered, Crippling and Lucky. These weapons hit in a small circular area so can hit several enemies. The Blizzard pistols don't cause threat, while the Pulverizers do. These weapons are not available with incendiary nor ensnare.
#The various bows, especially the Nocturnal Bow or the Assassin Bow, with crippling & incendiary. The bows don't cause threat, which is useful on mid-level missions, especially when combined with threat reducing weapons.
 
#There are various "Special Someone" pistols with good traits. These have extra long range (+3 spaces) as special functionality, which is super useful. Look out for versions with Cripple and Incendiary. There is also a GP version with Ensnare instead of cripple. This is not as useful as it will root only on the charge attack.