One of the biggest features in the Borderlands franchise has always been the crazy amount of loot. Borderlands 2 is no exception because there are a total of 2,736,589 different weapons in the game. This arsenal consists of different weapon types, that are made by various manufacturers, and use different weapon parts to construct an item.
Weapons in Borderlands 2 have a level requirement. Your character needs to have leveled up enough in order to use the item. However, you will encounter tougher enemies as you progress through the game, therefore, you need to keep your gear on par. A weapon can only carry you for like 5 levels.
Table of contents
Borderlands Weapon Types
| Weapon Type | Weapon Attributes |
|---|---|
| Pistol | Pistol: Fast reload speed. Repeater: Autofire with larger magazine size. Revolver: Slow High Damage. |
| SMG | Submachine Guns have a high fire rate and a low recoil which makes them useful against close to medium-range enemies. |
| Shotgun | Shotguns fire multiple pellets and are great for close-quarters combat. |
| Assault Rifle | ARs pack more punch than SMGs and are a bit more accurate for longer-range targets. |
| Sniper | Snipers are high-damage weapons for long-range combat. |
| Rocket Launchers | Rocket Launchers are very powerful but have a low ammo capacity, long reload time, and their ammo is expensive. |
Borderlands 2 Weapon Manufacturers
There are 8 different weapon manufacturers in Borderlands 2 each with their own unique manufacturer traits. Since every manufacturer has their own weapon skins you can identify the items while glancing over them.
| Weapon Manufacturer | Weapon Traits |
|---|---|
| Bandit | Bandit weapons have a large magazine size and take a bit longer to reload. Their weapon names use misspellings. Bandits do not produce sniper rifles. |
| Dahl | Military weaponry with camo skins that can tactically burst fire when aiming down sight while they are semi-automatic or fully automatic when shooting from the hip. Dahl does not produce shotguns or rocket launchers. |
| Hyperion | Hyperion Weapons have stabilizers and get more accurate when you keep firing them. Basically, they inverted the recoil as you start off with more sway and get more accurate over time. Hyperion does not produce rocket launchers or assault rifles. |
| Jakobs | These Old-West weapons are very strong and can be fired as fast as you can pull the trigger. Jakobs doesn’t have any elemental weapons with the exception of some unique or legendary items. Jakobs does not produce submachine guns or rocket launchers. |
| Mailiwan | These sci-fi weapons are always elemental and have an increased elemental effect chance. They are efficient when matching the correct element against your foes. Maliwan does not produce shotguns or assault rifles. |
| Tediore | Tediore weapons have mediocre statistics but can reload very fast because you simply throw away the gun in an arc while a new one spawns in your hands. The reload basically becomes a grenade throw and the more ammo is left in the clip the more damage the thrown weapon does. Tediore does not produce sniper rifles or assault rifles. |
| Torgue | Torgue weapons shoot micro-missiles instead of bullets and therefore always deal explosive damage. Torgue does not produce sniper rifles or submachine guns. |
| Vladof | Vladof weapons have a very high rate of fire. Vladof does not produce submachine guns or shotguns. |
Borderlands 2 Weapon Rarities
There are multiple weapon rarities in Borderlands 2, the higher the rarity, the better the stats are on the weapon or they have a unique feature that sets them apart from their counterparts.
| Rarity | Color | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Common | White | There is nothing special about these weapons. |
| Uncommon | Green | These have better stats than common weapons |
| Unique | Blue | These have better stats than uncommon weapons. Blue items with a Red Flavor Text on the item card are truly unique as they have special traits. |
| Rare | Purple | These have better stats than unique weapons. |
| E-Tech | Magenta | These weapons spawn with a special Eridian barrel. High Damage against High Ammo Consumption. |
| Seraph | Pink | These items can only be purchased with Seraph crystals in the story campaign add-ons. These weapons have unique traits or are a twist on legendary items. |
| Legendary | Orange | Legendary Weapons are some of the most powerful weapons in the game and can be obtained from Named Enemies and Bosses. They stand apart because they have a unique weapon part that gives them powerful traits |
| Pearlescent | Cyan | These are super rare items for the Ultimate Vault Hunter that drop from chubby enemies in UVHM. |
| Effervescent | Rainbow | These weapons were introduced with the “Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary” DLC. Some effervescent items have synergies with each other that only work in the specified location or with a specified item. |
Borderlands 2 Damage Types
The weapons in Borderlands 2 have various damage types. Each damage type has its strengths and weaknesses. Below you will find a quick overview but I also have an in-depth Elemental Damage Type Guide for Borderlands 2.
| Damage Type | Strength |
|---|---|
| Kinetic | Overall |
| Fire | Good Against Flesh |
| Explosive | Good Against Groups |
| Corrosive | Good Against Armor |
| Shock | Good Against Shields |
| Slag | Weakens Enemies to other Damage Types |
Weapon Parts
The weapons in Borderlands 2 are made out of multiple parts. As the items are procedurally generated the system selects a manufacturer and a weapon type as it starts assembling all the parts together. There are visible that let you quickly identify the item, however, there are some elements that affect the weapon’s attributes that are not visible.
| Weapon Type | Visible Non-Unique Parts |
|---|---|
| Pistol | 9 Accessory, 10 Barrel, 32 Body, 8 Grip, 9 Sight |
| SMG | 8 Accessory, 7 Barrel, 20 Body, 5 Grip, 6 Sight, 5 Stock |
| Shotgun | 9 Accessory, 7 Barrel, 20 Body, 5 Grip, 6 Sight, 5 Stock |
| Assault Rifle | 9 Accessory, 12 Barrel, 20 Body, 5 Grip, 6 Sight, 5 Stock |
| Sniper | 8 Accessory, 6 Barrel, 20 Body, 5 Grip, 5 Sight, 5 Stock |
