Table of contents
Introduction to the Next Level of Weaponry
One of the biggest features in the Borderlands franchise has always been the crazy amount of loot. Gearbox Software pushes themselves even further than ever before with Borderlands 3 as they promise to include over a million weapons in the game.
Gearbox Software already set the world record of ‘Most Guns in a Game’ in the Guinness Book of Records with the first Borderlands game. With Borderlands 2, the team didn’t break their own record by numbers, however, they revolutionized the loot itself. By giving each of the weapons manufacturers their own special traits, look, and feel, they made each weapon more distinct from one another. Therefore the search for new and exciting weaponry was a threat. For the first time, you could recognize the brand before you picked up the gun and it was no longer just about comparing the stats.
With Borderlands 3 it looks like Gearbox is once again going to revolutionize their loot.
“In the past, the guns all shared pieces between all the guns, and this time, we built entire suites of gun randomization inside of each manufacturer so that there’s a little bit more cohesiveness to them,”
Scott Kester
Weapon Types
Borderlands 3 has 7 different weapon types each one comes with its own pros & cons and has its own ammo type. Mix up your inventory with different weapon types because that way once you run out of ammo with one type of weapon you can always switch to a different type.
- Pistols
- SMGs
- Assault Rifles
- Shotguns
- Snipers
- Launchers
- Grenades
Weapon Manufacturers
Borderlands 3 has 9 different weapon manufacturers each with its own unique weapon traits. Usually, weapon types have a traditional way of how they function. In Borderlands this is determined by the Manufacturer. This means you will find weapon types that act like different weapon types.
Most of your favorite classic weapon manufacturers return in Borderlands 3. The only one that has been replaced is the Bandit weapons manufacturer. They have been rebranded as COV weapons.
Weapon manufacturers have new unique gimmicks to them compared to previous Borderlands games. This makes the loot feel fresh and exciting.
Atlas
Step 1: Hit your enemies with tracker tags. Step 2: Unleash a hail of Smart Bullets that track towards your targets. Step 3: Loot!
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Cost-Effective | x2 Projectile |
| Overencumbered | Increased magazine size |
| Optimized | Increased Damage But Decreased Magazine Size |
| Standardized | Increased Accuracy & Reload |
COV
Enjoy uninterrupted damage-dealing courtesy of “infinite” ammo magazines, occasionally interrupted by unpredictable overheating.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Brr | Elemental dmg type – Cryo |
| Hawt | Elemental dmg type – Incendiary |
| Kemik | Elemental dmg type – Corrosive |
| Melty | Elemental dmg type – Radiation |
| Moar | x2 Projectile |
| MOARR | x3 Projectile |
| Pointy | Melee Attachement, Increased Melee Dmg |
| Stabby | Melee Attachement, Increased Melee Dmg |
| Zappy | Elemental dmg type – Shocking |
Dahl
Toggle between alternate fire modes depending on your play style, your predicament, and your predilection for bonus damage.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Adapting | x2 Projectile |
| Arctic | Elemental dmg type – Cryo |
| Bladed | Melee Attachement |
| Daunting | Extended Mag |
| Dauntless | Increased Rate of Fire |
| Decaying | Elemental dmg type – Radiation |
| Disciplined | Increased DPS, Decreased Mag |
| Freezing | Elemental dmg type – Cryo Damage |
| High Capacity | Extended Mag |
| Reflexive | Increased Reload Speed |
| Relentless | Increased Rate of Fire Speed |
| Searing | Elemental dmg type – Incendiary Damage |
| Shocking | Elemental dmg type – shock dmg |
| Tamed | Reduced recoil, Increased handling |
| Trained | Extended Mag & Increased Accuracy |
| Venomous | Elemental dmg type – Corrosive |
Hyperion
Aim down the sights to take cover behind your weapon-mounted shield and keep your finger on the trigger for increased accuracy.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Auditing | Elemental dmg type – Cryo Damage |
| Bank-rolled | Chance Ammo returned to Mag |
| Bleeding Edge | Melee Attachement |
| Cash-Infused | Shock & Increased Money Drop |
| Defrauding | Corrosive |
| Holistic | Increased Handling |
| Hostile | Incendiary |
| Popular | Increased Mag & Handle |
| Powerhouse | Increased DPS & Crit |
| Redundant | x2 Projectile |
| Undermining | Radiation |
| Viral | Increased DPS |
Jakobs
Deliver devastating critical hits to enemies’ soft-and-sensitives, then joy-puke as your bullets ricochet towards other targets.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Bloodsoaked | Melee Attachment, Increased Melee Dmg |
| Bowie | Melee Attachment, Increased Melee Dmg |
| Cuttin | Melee Attachment, Increased Melee Dmg |
| Dastardly | Increased DPS |
| Deadeye | Increased accuracy & Zoom |
| Quad | 4x Shot |
| Quickdraw | Increased accuracy |
| Speedloadin’ | Increased reload speed |
| Trick | Increased Crit |
| Wicked | High DPS |
Maliwan
Toggle between two elements, charge your weapon and deal guaranteed elemental damage with your finger glued to the trigger.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Abundant | Increased Mag size |
| Binary | x2 Projectile |
| Expert | Increased Handling |
| Hazardous | Corrosive |
| Compressing | Increased reload speed |
| Escalating | Increases DPS output the longer it fires (needs confirms on more weapons) |
| Vivid | increased Damage |
| Sneering | Increased Fire Rate (unconfrmed the difference in this and Stark) |
| Mocking | Increased DPS |
| Stark | Increased Fire Rate |
Tediore
Toss your gun like a grenade to reload, then watch it pursue a nearby enemy as a fully loaded version digi-structs in your hand.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Clearance | x2 Projectile |
| Maxed Out | Increased DPS |
| Firesale | Elemental dmg type – Incendiary |
| Frozen | Elemental dmg type – Cryo |
| Poison | Elemental dmg type – Corrosive |
| Precision | Increased Accuracy |
| Rad | Elemental dmg type – Radiation |
| Same-Day | Increased Fire Rate |
| Supercharged | Elemental dmg type – Shock |
| Turbo | Increased rate of fire |
Torgue
Switch between regular and sticky-projectile fire modes. Stickies do more damage if a bunch of them detonate on the same target.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Burning | Elemental dmg type – Incendiary |
| Casual | Increased DPS |
| Cocky | Increased Splash & Accuracy |
| Double Penetrating | x2 Projectile |
| Gratifying | Extended Mag & Increased DPS |
| Itchy | Elemental dmg type – Radiation |
| Nasty | Increased Splash |
| Oozing | Elemental dmg type – Corrosive |
| Packin’ | Increased Magazine Size |
| Shrinking | Elemental dmg type – Cryo |
| Stimulating | Elemental dmg type – Shock |
| Shredded | Improved dmg and projectiles |
| Stuffed | Improved splash |
| Triple | Armor Penetration |
| Triple-Penetrating | 3-Shot |
Vladof
Augment these rapid-firing, ammo-hungry guns with under-barrel attachments including tasers, rocket tubes, and additional gun barrels.
| Prefix | Effect |
|---|---|
| Annexed | x2 Projectile |
| Englufing | Bi-Pod attachment |
| Molten | Elemental dmg type – Incendiary |
| Negating | Elemental dmg type – Cryo |
| Nuclear | Elemental dmg type – Radiation |
| Otchky | Increase accuracy and mag size |
| Pestilent | Elemental dmg type – Corrosive |
| Resolute | High DPS |
| Storming | Elemental dmg type – Shock |
| Unending | Increased Magazine Size |
| Vicious | Melee Attachement |
Weapons Rarities
Borderlands 3 has 5 different weapon rarities. Higher rarity weapons often have better stats than their lower rarity counterparts. It’s possible that a lower rarity can outperform a legendary item in some areas but the special legendary trait that a legendary item has is what it makes it excel.
- Common (White)
- Uncommon (Green)
- Rare (Blue)
- Epic (Purple)
- Legendary (Orange)
All Borderlands 3 Weapons Ranked
Elemental Weapon Damage
The weapons in Borderlands 3 can also output elemental damage again. Maliwan weapons can even switch between various elements.
| Damage Type | Strength |
|---|---|
| Kinetic | Overall |
| Fire | Good Against Flesh |
| Cryo | Slows Enemies Down Until They Freeze |
| Corrosive | Good Against Armor |
| Shock | Good Against Shields |
| Radiation | Spreads |
Melee Weapons
Randy Pitchford confirmed that there are 1 Million Weapons in Borderlands 3, however, you only have 1 offhand melee weapon. Gearbox Software is adding Melee Weapons to your loadout in Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands.
Instance Loot
If you play Borderlands 3 in co-op you don’t have to worry about loot ninjas anymore. Each player will have its own loot stream so your loot is your loot. If you actually like the old Borderlands 2 rules, with shared loot, then that’s also possible.
If you forget to pick up an important item or are not able to pick it up for some reason, then there is the Lost Loot Machine for you.
