All weapons, and what each one is bad at
The grid system can rescue almost any gun, so a tier list here is not a verdict on damage — it is a measure of how much work a weapon needs before it carries a real mission. Two of the thirteen are hidden unlocks.
What the tiers mean
A tier is a measure of how much support a weapon needs, not how much damage it does in a vacuum.
S
Carries a loadout in almost any mission without the battlefield cooperating.
A
Strong, but asks for setup, positioning or a specific partner weapon.
B
Narrower profile, or needs more effort to reach the same result.
C
Does one thing well enough that the missing coverage still hurts.
| Weapon | Tier | Role | Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| FR.15833 Plate Launcher | S | Area denial / ammo economy | Default pool |
| Gunship Cannon | S | Traditional primary | Default pool |
| Shocklance | S | Charge / area | Default pool |
| Accelerator | S | Mobility damage | Default pool |
| Globbler | A | Burst / area | Gravity Farms bunker · Ground Zero |
| Diffraction Driver | A | Ion scattergun | Resources, after level 10 |
| Lead Flinger | A | Single-shot burst | Default pool |
| Au-Si Jackrabbit | A | Shotgun | Default pool |
| The Cycler | B | Elemental automatic | Default pool |
| Swarm Launcher | B | Boss damage | Default pool |
| The Carver | B | Melee / survival | Broken Frame · 4 modules |
| DMLR | C | Mode-swap rifle | Default pool |
| Trident S2 | C | Focused fire | Default pool |
Every weapon in detail
Role, the one weakness that matters, and how to unlock the two hidden entries.
FR.15833 Plate Launcher
The best overall pick because it adds damage without demanding your whole loadout. Plates pressure single targets and groups, returns reward positioning, and it feeds the ammo economy of your second gun. Clearing Plasma is the core upgrade.
Area denial / ammo economyGunship Cannon
If you want a straightforward primary that behaves like a primary, this is the answer the tier list gives. No positioning tax.
Traditional primaryShocklance
The safest weapon to invest in early: huge area sizes carry it. Micro Detonators plus Half Cocked is still the backbone, and Ready and Waiting charges it while you use something else.
Charge / areaAccelerator
Strong tracking and sustained pressure while you reposition. Shielded targets are its real problem — pair it with something that answers shields.
Mobility damageGlobbler
Higher raw ceiling than most of S tier, but it wants grounded targets and favourable positioning. Hidden weapon — unlocked through the Gravity Farms bunker.
Burst / areaDiffraction Driver
New in 1.0. A short-range cone for close coverage; spin the halo and the fire narrows and extends for distance. Flexible before you have finished a grid.
Ion scattergunLead Flinger
Built around Big Fat Doobie (one much larger bullet) and Lucky Bastard (last shot can refund ammo). With Doobie, every shot is your last shot.
Single-shot burstAu-Si Jackrabbit
Excellent when the thing in front of you needs to die now. Incendiary interactions give it more depth than the shotgun label suggests.
ShotgunThe Cycler
Only interesting once you stop treating it as a normal automatic. It gains ammo when you damage with your other weapon, so it pairs well as a second gun.
Elemental automaticSwarm Launcher
Genuine bossing strength, but normal missions expose how much it depends on the right targets being present.
Boss damageThe Carver
More valuable as a survival tool than its placement suggests. Melee range is a real disadvantage against projectiles, but a developed Carver rewards aggression.
Melee / survivalDMLR
Clever build options, including mode swapping and ammo-focused setups. Consistent damage is the problem, not the idea.
Mode-swap rifleTrident S2
Its focused strengths do not compensate for limited crowd coverage in a game built around swarms.
Focused fireBuffed in 1.0, outside the tier list
Patch 1.0 raised four weapons that do not appear in the current tier list: G6 Streetsweeper (+40%, with falloff starting 4 m farther out), A16 Beam Ripper (+40%), The Last Argument (+40%) and the Laser Cannon (+20%, with less recoil). They may be better than their absence suggests — treat them as unranked, not weak.
Also worth knowing: the community count is “12 primary weapons”, while the 1.0 tier list names thirteen. The difference is unresolved, so this index lists every name rather than forcing a number.
Where to go next
- Weapon tier list — the ranking logic and what “S” actually means.
- Best builds — the upgrade stacks that make these guns work.
- Hidden weapons — Carver and Globbler, step by step.
- Upgrade grid — why nothing fits yet.