Best Weapons by Type

Overview

Crimson Desert features over a dozen weapon types, each with a unique moveset, strengths, and weaknesses. This guide ranks the best individual weapons within each category based on their attack power, special effects, Abyss Core socket count, and overall usefulness. Weapons can be obtained from vendors, boss drops, quest rewards, and treasure chests throughout Pywel. All weapons can be refined at a blacksmith to increase their stats.

Weapon Type Rankings

Before diving into individual weapons, here is how each weapon type compares overall based on community consensus and testing.

Best Swords (One-Handed)

Swords are the most versatile weapon type in Crimson Desert. They work with both offensive and defensive playstyles, pair naturally with shields, and are the easiest weapon to learn. Their main limitation is crowd-fighting, where two-handed weapons have an advantage.

Best Greatswords (Two-Handed)

Greatswords cover wide attack arcs, hit extremely hard, and have less wind-up than you would expect from a weapon this size. They perform equally well against single targets and groups. The Greatsword is available to both Kliff and Damiane.

Best Spears

Spears are among the fastest and most well-rounded dedicated weapons in the game. Their reach provides safety, and their knockdown moves give genuine crowd control value. Spears are excellent secondary weapons for punishing staggered enemies.

Best Axes

Axes deliver the highest single-hit damage in the game and provide strong AoE, but they are very slow and punishing if you mistime your swings. Axes perform particularly well in Oongka's hands due to his inherent stagger bonuses on heavy attacks.

Best Hammers

Hammers are setup weapons rather than pure damage dealers. Their charged attacks launch enemies into the air and clear space around you, making them excellent for starting combos or creating breathing room. They have surprisingly low raw damage for their weight, but their crowd control is unmatched.

Best Rapiers

Rapiers are the most mobile weapon type in Crimson Desert. They have a built-in counterattack and riposte mechanic that deals massive damage when timed correctly, but they require precise inputs. Rapiers are primarily used by Damiane.

Best Bows

Bows allow stealth eliminations and mid-fight distance creation. They support various projectile types with different effects (fire, poison, etc.), making them versatile both in and out of combat. Bows rank S-tier overall thanks to their utility.

Best Pistols and Ranged Firearms

Pistols are fast-shooting ranged weapons with an innate dodge mechanic, making them excellent for maintaining pressure while staying safe. Hand Cannons are the only AoE gun type, capable of destroying groups in single shots. Rifles offer the highest per-shot damage at extreme range but suffer from very long reload times.

Best Daggers

Daggers are primarily stealth tools used for assassinations and targeting weak points at close range. They cannot be used in open combat as a primary weapon but are valuable for clearing camps silently before a fight begins.

Best Shields

Shields are defensive equipment that enable blocking and counter-attacks. They pair with one-handed swords and maces. The best shields balance raw defense with Abyss Core sockets and attack speed bonuses.

General Weapon Tips

• Weapons can be refined at any blacksmith to increase their base stats. Prioritize refining your main weapon before spending silver on new gear.

• Abyss Core sockets are often more valuable than raw ATK. A weapon with five sockets (like the Ignir Sword) can outperform a higher-ATK weapon with fewer sockets once fully slotted.

• Weapons scale differently depending on the character. The Great Axe performs better on Oongka than Kliff due to Oongka's inherent stagger bonuses.

• Carry a ranged weapon at all times. Even melee-focused builds benefit from having a bow or pistol for pulling enemies, stealth kills, and dealing damage during dangerous boss phases.

• Unarmed (bare-handed) combat functions as a combo extender and finisher that synergizes with every weapon type. It ranks S+ tier because of how it enhances other weapons rather than replacing them.

• Dual-wielding requires two one-handed weapons of the same or compatible type. You can dual-wield swords, axes, rapiers, or mix weapons like a sword and axe.