With much higher damage than their standard counterparts and powerful unique effects to boot, Mk6 Unique weapons are the very best weapons in Dune Awakening.
This tier list considers both PVE and PVP content and has been created to help you think about which Schematics are worth pushing for in the Deep Desert or the Landsraad.
Note: This Tier List will be a living Tier List, updated as we have the opportunity to try new weapons (when they appear in the Deep Desert Loot Tables).
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Dune Awakening Best Weapons - Tier List
The following Tier List is focused solely on Mk6 Unique weapons, the highest tier, and most powerful weapons in the game.
S-Tier Discussion
The best items in the game, universally useful and a top priority in the Landsraad.
The Ancient Way
Source, stats & crafting info available at our The Ancient Way database page.
This Rocket Launcher is an incredible weapon that fires rockets which can lock-on, making it much easier to take down or seriously damage ornithopters from the ground.
This weapon is one of the few ways in the game that you can actually fight back in PVP against players in ornithopters and for that reason cements itself as one of the most unique and powerful weapons in the game, an easy S-Tier choice.
Replica Pulse-sword
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Replica Pulse-sword database page.
Melee weapons in general are extremely powerful in Dune Awakening, both in PVE and in PVP, thanks to their ability to deal huge damage through shields.
The Replica Pulse-sword has the highest damage of any melee weapon in the game and provides a small Stamina boost on its parry. It also has an AoE parry which makes it the best weapon for PVE content as well as one of the strongest weapons in the game overall.
Static Needle
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Static Needle database page.
Static Needle is one of the most confusing weapons in the game, with substantial testing required to divine what it actually does. Turns out it drains an additional 25 Power (Shield) on hit.
By comparison, Halleck's Pick does 25 Shield Damage total per hit, so Static Needle deals twice as much Shield Damage (but without the poison obviously). All weapons that deal additional damage to shields are powerful in PVP (Dart For Every Man, Regis Disruptor etc) so to have this on a melee weapon is very powerful.
Halleck's Pick
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Halleck's Pick database page.
Sticking with melee weapons, next we have Halleck's Pick. Although it doesn't have quite the same amount of damage as the Replica Pulse-sword, it has a faster attack speed and most importantly, applies poison on hit.
Poison is a very powerful effect in Dune Awakening, especially in PVP, so being able to rack up those poison stacks can be the difference between life or death.
Cauterizer
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Cauterizer database page.
Similar to Halleck's Pick, the Cauterizer is an extremely powerful melee weapon not only because of its great damage and attack speed, but because it applies fire damage on hit.
As with poison, once applied, a Fire Damage DoT bypasses shields which can be incredibly useful in all content types but especially in PVP.
Dunewatcher
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Dunewatcher database page.
Dunewatcher is the most powerful Spitdart in the game, a sniper with huge damage that also applies poison on hit. This is one of few ranged weapons that excels in both PVE and PVP.
Regis Tripleshot Repeating Rifle
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Regis Tripleshot Repeating Rifle database page.
Similar to Dunewatcher, it is the poison effect applied by this powerful Spitdart rifle that lands it firmly in the S-tier. The horizontal pattern and lower damage profile mean that the Dunewatcher will outclass it for most PVE content but it's still an exceptional ranged weapon and one of the best ranged weapons in the game for PVP.
Black Market K-28 Lasgun
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Black Market K-28 Lasgun database page.
We included this in S-Tier because, for its intended purpose, it cannot be matched. The Lasgun is the best weapon in the game for structural damage and therefore almost essential for challenging PVP base raids. It also deals pretty decent vehicle damage too but drains your Power on use so has limited effectiveness in player or vehicle combat.
There are two Lasguns in the game and this is the more powerful of the two, the other can be obtained for free by completing the Cutting Edge Quest.
A-Tier Discussion
Powerful or useful items, but usually somewhat niche or situational.
Shellburster
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Shellburster database page.
The Shellburster is an enhanced GRDA-44 Shotgun (Scattergun). It fires 6 bullets per shot in a wide burst but with one crucial difference, the Shellburster fires incendiary rounds which apply Fire Damage on hit. Elemental effects are powerful in Dune Awakening as the damage goes through shields so this weapon earns its spot in the A-tier.
Replica Pulse-knife
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Replica Pulse-knife database page.
With an effect somewhat similar to, but better than, the Replica Pulse-sword, this weapon grants a minor stamina boost on each successful hit.
As with most unique weapons, it also gives a huge damage boost over its standard Mk6 crafted equivalent. In most PVE scenarios you'd rather have the Replica Pulse-sword for the AoE parry but you can't go wrong with any of the Mk6 unique melee weapons, including this.
Feyd's Drinker
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Feyd's Drinker database page.
Almost identical in stats to the Replica Pulse-knife, but slightly worse since the unique effect is of limited value. Feyd's Drinker automatically harvests blood when you hit enemies, which can be stored in a blood bag. You will always (or should always) have a stacked Literjon with you so unless you are trying to optimize for weight then you're not likely to get much use out of this, but again the damage is excellent.
B-Tier Discussion
Decent items, situationally useful but probably not worth going out of your way for.
Regis Burst Drillshot
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Regis Burst Drillshot database page.
The Regis Burst Drillshot looks great at first glance - a Drillshot that fires a double burrow-dart shot. However, in reality it isn't actually all that impressive. The time it takes to charge is significant and your shield goes down from the moment you start charging. This makes you extremely vulnerable in both PVE and PVP scenarios.
When compared to its peers, like the Penetrator, which doesn't require charging, has higher damage per shot and also applies a Bleed effect, it fails to live up to it in almost every way. However, it's still a double-shot drillshot rifle with a reasonably high damage output so it's not awful, but there's much better ranged weapons out there.
Indara's Lullaby
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Indara's Lullaby database page.
From the weapon description alone, you might be confused as to whether or not Indara's Lullaby has any unique effect at all. It does - Indara's Lullaby has a triple-shot burst fire effect. The problem with Indara's Lullaby is that it is very poor at dealing with shields, which makes it weak against most opponents you will face in the game, both in PVE and PVP.
It's headshot damage against unshielded enemies is pretty decent but when you consider the power level of other weapons which can both burst through shields, apply elemental effects and one-shot unshielded enemies, it's hard to recommend this weapon.
Salusan Vengeance
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Salusan Vengeance database page.
Similar to Indara's Lullaby, this is a fine rifle with reasonably good damage against unshielded enemies, but is lacklustre when it comes to dealing with shielded foes. The description, which alludes to 'explosive darts' make it seem like it's going to be much stronger than it actually is.
Not awful, but I wouldn't recommend spending your Spice Melange and Plastanium on it.
C-Tier Discussion
Poor items which are of limited usefulness.
Bashar's Command
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Bashar's Command database page.
Light Machine Guns are generally much weaker than other weapon types in Dune Awakening. They are slow & cumbersome, take a long time to reload, struggle to deal with shields well and leave you vulnerable to melee opponents. Unfortunately Bashar's Command does nothing to remedy these issues and as such is relegated to the bottom of the Tier List.
Vaporizer
Source, stats & crafting info available at our Vaporizer database page.
Given how powerful Fire damage is in Dune Awakening (and all elemental effects for that matter), and how annoying those heavy flame-thrower wielding enemies are, you might think that a flamethrower would be a great choice.
Unfortunately flamethrowers suffer from many of the same issues as LMGs in Dune Awakening, which make them mostly unusable in endgame content. The lack of mobility and range, on top of the vulnerability to melee opponents will all get in the way of your firestarter ambitions.
