Up to 83% Off VPN
Windrose takes a surprising almost Soulslike approach to combat with stamina management, positioning, and well-timed parries (Perfect Blocks) all taking centre stage. That said, weapon choice still shapes your entire build, and some weapons are simply better than others at this stage of Early Access.
In this guide we'll look at a bunch of the best weapons, how to find them, what they do, and why they are so good. While also explaining the key stats for weapons and how to ascend them from Rare to Epic.
Bookmark Me: We're working hard to improve this article and it will be continuously updated (daily at the moment) as our testing continues. Expect full tooltipping soon also!
Quick Links:
- Weapon Types and Stats
- Rarity and Ascension
- Suggested Weapon Set-up
- Best Weapons In Windrose (Early Picks)
- Other Rare and Epic Weapon Choices
Windrose Weapon Types and Stats
There are eight weapon types in the game so far: Rapier, Saber, Club, Halberd, Greatsword, Pistol, Musket, and Blunderbuss. Each weapon type scales with a specific stat - Precision, Strength, or Agility.
Mastery is a fourth combat stat, increasing your critical hit; however, no weapons scale with Mastery in the same way as the other three.
- Precision: scales Rapiers, Pistols, and Muskets. Best for single-target damage and ranged play.
- Agility: scales Sabers, Greatswords, and Blunderbusses. Best for fast combos and AoE clearing.
- Strength: scales Clubs and Halberds only. No ranged option, purely works on melee.
- Mastery: Increases critical hit chance - effects all weapon types.
Rarity and Ascension: How To Upgrade Your Weapon Tier In Windrose
Pro Tip: Tumbaga Ingots are obtained from Ruins which appear throughout the game. You'll need 1x Rope on you to rappel down into the ruins.
As with many games, weapons are split into rarity. These are: Common, Uncommon, Rare, and Epic. The higher the rarity, the better base stats, and the better the weapon scales as it levels up (from D up to S). Rare and Epic-tier weapons also come with unique passive effects. Common and Uncommon weapons have no meaningful passives and cannot be ascended.
Ascension requires spending Tumbaga Ingots at the Weaponsmith Station to upgrade a weapon's tier from Rare to Epic, unlocking a new perk/ability. It's one of the biggest power spikes available so prioritise ascending your main weapons early.
Suggested Weapon Set-up
We'll list out all of our top picks below but before that we wanted to suggest a very powerful combo that will last you well past the mid game. It involves making clever use of the fact that both Rapiers and Pistols scale with Precision.
- Suggested Melee Weapon: Rapier of a Thousand Cuts
- Suggested Ranged Weapon: Reliable Pistol OR Drake's Double-Barrelled Pistol
First of all the Rapier is insane, it's bleed effect allows you to tackle large groups of enemies easily and it's incredible attack speed consistently staggers enemies. The Pistols allow you to get in some great follow-up damage whenever the passive reload is finished.
As both weapons scale with Precision, you can ignore Strength and Agility and put all of your points (other than Vitality and Endurance) into Precision. When you get to the Cursed Swamp and you can craft Swamp Pie (+20 Precision) and you can ascend your necklace to the Major Necklace of Precision (+15 Precision), the damage output is crazy.
Tip: Hiring Black Axel and assigning him to your Cooking Fire before you start crafting Epic food is highly recommended as it's expensive and the extra procs are great.
Best Weapons In Windrose (Our Top Picks)
The list below breaks down some of the best weapons you can get your hands on.
Note: The bolded abilities are only obtained at Epic tier.
| Weapon | Type | Stat | Abilities |
| Rapier of a Thousand Cuts | 1H Sword | Precision |
Dealing Damage applies Bleeding. Stacks up to 5 times. Each stack deals 25 Damage per second. Bleed damage dealt while holding this weapon restores Temporal Health. |
| Dragon's Breath | Blunderbuss | Agility |
Bullets have a 40% chance to deal bonus Fire Damage. Dealing Damage has 60% chance of triggering fire explosion around the target. |
| Reliable Pistol | Pistol | Precision |
Can fire 3 shots without reloading. Deals 15% bonus Damage to pirates, outlaws, and other cutthroats. |
| Drake's Double-Barreled Pistol | Pistol | Precision |
Can fire two quick shots in succession. Shots apply Vulnerability effect to the target. All Damage dealt to affected targets is increased by 15%. |
| Cutlass | 1H Sword | Agility |
Hits apply Take Aim! effect up to 9 stacks. Your next shot deals 10% bonus Damage per stack. Attacks consume 10% less Stamina. |
| Plague Halberd | 2H Halberd | Strength |
Dealing Damage grants you a stack of Plague Echoes effect. At 5 stacks, the special [F] attack becomes available. Using the special attack instantly restores 35% of your maximum Health. |
| Rapier of Devastation | 1H Sword | Agility |
Light Attacks apply up to 8 Plague marks. Heavy Attacks consume all accumulated marks, dealing bonus Damage for each. If a Heavy Attack consumes more than 5 marks, you restore 40% of your Maximum Health. |
| Swamp Creature’s Tooth | 2H Club | Strength |
Critical Hits with this weapon no longer deal bonus Damage, but instead trigger a burst of Distortion, dealing Damage to all nearby enemies. The lower your remaining Health, the higher your Distortion Damage. |
| Soul Eater | 2H Sword | Strength |
This weapon has a special attack [F] that drains Health from nearby enemies. Cooldown: 2 min. Special attack Damage additionally scales with Vitality. |
| Razor | 1H Sword | Agility |
Increases base Critical Hit Chance by 10%. Increases the Perfect Block opportunity window. |
| Sturdy Rapier | 1H Sword | Precision |
Increases the Perfect Block opportunity window. Critical Damage is increased by 20%. |
How To Obtain Our 'Top Picks'
- Rapier of a Thousand Cuts - Can found in a chest buried at the first camp with the red cloth on the tree or during the Underground Network quest.
- Reliable Pistol - Pirate Chests
- Drake's Double-Barreled Pistol - Pirate Chests
- Cutlass - Pirate Chests
- Plague Halberd - Crypt Chests and Gardenruin Chests
- Rapier of Devastation - Crypt Chests and Gardenruin Chests
- Swamp Creature’s Tooth - Not confirmed - Likely quest reward
- Soul Eater - Reward for the Ghost Captain boss fight
- Dragon’s Breath - Crypt Chests and Gardenruin Chests
- Razor - Pirate Chests
- Sturdy Rapier - Pirate Chests
Other Rare and Epic Weapon Choices
The rest of the weapons are listed below. Some of these are still very powerful, especially with certain builds or in certain situations. This list is not fully exhaustive yet, but we'll continue updating it.
Note: The in bold "Passive" are the Epic additions after ascending a Rare.
| Weapon | Hands | Stat | Passive |
| Arboris Saber | 1H Sword | Strength |
Dealing Damage grants you a stack of Plague Echoes effect. At 5 stacks, the special [F] attack becomes available. Deals Crude Damage and scales with Strength. Attacks with this weapon are more effective at converting Temporal Health into Health. |
| Reliable Musket | Musket | Precision |
Reloads faster than other muskets. Increases Critical Damage by 20%. |
| Plague Pistol | Pistol | Precision | Restores 40% of dealt Damage as Health. |
| Stalwart Greatsword | 2H Sword | Agility |
Increases Posture Points by 1. Increases Critical Damage by 20%. |
| Sturdy Halberd | 2H Halberd | Strength |
Increases Critical Hit Chance by 10%. Base Damage of this item is 15 points higher. |
| Dueling Greatsword | 2H Sword | Agility |
Each Perfect Block applies a retaliation effect. Increasing damage by 10%. Stacking 3 times, taking damage removes the effect. Perfect Block restore 10% health. |
| Buccaneer’s Friend | Musket | Agility |
While standing still, the weapon spread is almost eliminated. Deals 15% bonus damage to animals. |
| Dueling Saber | 1H Sword | Agility |
Each successful Perfect Block applies Retaliation effect, increasing your Damage by 8%. Stacks up to 3 times. Taking Damage removes the effect. Increases base Critical Hit Chance by 10%. |
| Bonebreaker | 2H Club | Strength |
The more Stamina you have, the more Damage the weapon deals. Increases Critical Hit Chance by 10%. |
| Sturdy Mace | 2H Club | Strength |
Increases Posture Points by 1. Attacks consume 15% less Stamina. |
| Razor | 1H Sword | Agility |
Increases base Critical Hit Chance by 10%. Increases the Perfect Block opportunity window. |
| Sturdy Saber | 1H Sword | Agility |
Increases Posture Points by 1. Attacks consume 20% less Stamina. |
| Reliable Blunderbuss | Blunderbuss | Agility |
At close range, shots have a small chance to knock enemies down. Shots consume less gunpowder. |
| Infantry Musket | Pistol | Precision |
Allows you to perform a special bayonet attack with [F].This weapon’s Damage scales with Agility. Movement while aiming does not affect weapon spread. |
| Executioner | 2H Sword | Strength |
Killing enemies grants stacks of Decimation effect. Each stack increases your Critical Hit Chance by 10%, up to 30%. While the Decimation effect is active, you gain Apathy effect, granting 10% Damage Resistance. |
How to get each weapon
- Arboris Saber - Crypt Chests and Gardenruin Chests
- Reliable Musket - Pirate Chests
- Plague Pistol - Crypt Chests and Gardenruin Chests
- Stalwart Greatsword - Pirate Chests
- Sturdy Halberd - Pirate Chests
- Dueling Greatsword - Found in early chests (We found ours in the Glorious Hunter quest location)
- Buccaneer’s Friend - Rewarded for the Glorious Hunter end quest
- Dueling Saber - Pirate Chests
- Bonebreaker - Pirate Chests
- Sturdy Mace - Pirate Chests
- Sturdy Saber - Pirates Chests
- Reliable Blunderbuss - Pirates Chests
- Infantry Musket - Pirate Chests
- Executioner - Found during "Need a Bigger Boat" quest in a Shipwreck
Check out our other content for more in-depth Windrose content and expert tips.
