Best Starfield weapons: Where to find unique and exotic guns
Here are some of the best unique weapons we've found in Starfield, as well as where to get some Exotic ones.
Whether it’s desperado spacers, ferocious terrormorphs or a deadly combination of the two, the space-age frontier of Starfield is a dangerous place to try and make a living. That said, Starfield's best weapons will help you on your adventure across the galaxy.
Before you take one small step for man outside the safety of your ship, you need to make sure you’re packing one of the best weapons in Starfield, primed with enough ammo and tactical modifications to make sure it’s up to the task.
Here’s some guidance on how to lay your hands on some of the premier ordinance the galaxy has to offer, as well as where to find some unique and powerful guns that really make a difference on the battlefield. To avoid spoilers, we've highlighted some great unique weapons you can pick up relatively early on in your adventure. But while there is plenty of good stuff to be had at the end of main story missions, these are all worthy additions to your arsenal.
Here are some of the best Starfield weapons and guns that money can buy, or quests can earn, I guess!
Pistols, Energy or Ballistic Weapons in Starfield?
In previous Bethesda games, pistols were king of the early game since they were common, cheap and their ammo was plentiful. Pistols are also fantastic in Starfield, and that's not just because you can pretend you're Han Solo. Because Pistols, Ballistic weapons and Lazer weapons are all tier 1 skills, you can pour points into them early on to turn your sidearm into a high-powered and incredibly effective single-shot weapon.
However, in Starfield you can find almost every type of weapon pretty much immediately, so it’s more down to personal preference whether you want to focus on pistols, lazers or ballistic Weapons in the long term.
The different types of ammo you need for each weapon archetype are also equally available, so you won’t find it significantly easier to stock up on either.
With that said though, there is a much greater variety of ballistic weaponry on offer, both when it comes to pistols and rifles, so you might naturally find yourself gravitating that way - even if you didn't intend to.
Where to find the best weapons in Starfield
Most of the best weapons in Starfield - and the best pieces of loot in general - are found by scouring the galaxy, defeating enemies and looting settlements.
When you choose a landing zone on a planet, the surrounding area is procedurally populated with points of interest for you to explore. This means that no two players’ experiences of any given planet are likely to be same, since you’ll see differently placed semi-random pieces.
However, whatever does appear on your space frontier, you will always be able to find hostile outposts filled with enemies. Look for the leader, usually a Spacer Punk or Spacer Captain, and they will often be a "legendary enemy".
Legendary enemies in Starfield are differentiated from regular ones by their health bar. If you've wondered why some enemies take loads more damage than others, it's because they're Legendary enemies. These bad guys have a much higher chance to drop Epic (purple) or Legendary (gold) items that will be loaded with special bonuses in addition to the modifications and base weapon stats.
Try your luck with these random drops and you get all sorts of great stuff, which you can then tailor to your needs using weapon engineering to craft new mods. Alternatively, if you want to farm these items, make a save game outside the area as you load in. That way you can take out the legendary enemies in an area, then if you don't get anything good you can just reload and try again.
Some of the best weapon archetypes to look out for are:
- Regulator - Pistol
- Razorback - Revolver
- Orion - Lazer Rifle
- Kodama - SMG
- Beowulf - Assault Rifle
- Breach - Shotgun
- Old World Shotgun - Shotgun
- Magshot - Magnetic Pistol
Best Unique Weapons in Starfield
Urban Eagle
Sick of being over-encumbered? If you make your way to Clint's Collectibles in Gagarin Landing on the planet of Gagarin in the Alpha Centauri system, he sells a unique Urban Eagle with the titanium build perk.
This makes the weapon incredibly light - we're talking less than half a kilogram - so it takes up almost no inventory space at all. But the lack of heft doesn't mean it's missing any punch. The Urban Eagle is a decent pistol archetype and deals a ton of damage when invested into.
Sir Livingston’s Pistol
A gift from your Dad if you choose the Kid Stuff trait during character creation, Sir Livingston’s Pistol is considered an antique in the world of Starfield. This customised .45 handgun belonged to an old Constellation chairman, and is a fun and powerful weapon in the early game - particularly if you chose the pistols Skill.
Peacekeeper
Given to the player as a reward for completing the Groundpounder series of quests in the Altair system, Peacekeeper is a unique 11mm machine gun with a slew of useful attachments and a high damage output.
Thanks to its large ammo capacity, Peacekeeper excels in the more militaristic combat encounters you face during your adventures through the galaxy. Its fast fire rate means it’s good at close range, but it’s accurate enough to work just as well at longer distances too.
Once you’ve added it to your arsenal, Peacekeeper will quickly become your go-to when dealing with multiple human enemies.
Deadeye
The Deadeye Pistol packs a punch, and fortunately for you, it's relatively easy to get your hands on. A rather fancy looking pistol at that, this one will be given to you already modified.
If you fancy giving it a whirl, start by joining the Freestar Rangers in Akila City. Your first quest with them will see you walk away with the Deadeye.
Keelhauler
Who says crime doesn't pay? For less scrupulous characters, engaging with the Crimson Fleet faction easily earns you a powerful pistol without a lot of effort. It doesn't look half bad either.
After you've agreed to infiltrate the Fleet at the behest of Sysdef, or joined up with the pirates of your own volition, meet Delgado aboard The Key.
Continue with his slew of quests and you will quickly be given Keelhauler as a mission reward.
Boom Boom
Got hundreds of 12 gauge rounds burning a hole in your pocket? Well they're about to burn a hole in a lot more things with Boom Boom - a unique shotgun which fires explosive shells at enemies.
This is also a great weapon to send some of your excess cash on, since it's available immediately from Neon Tactical in the city of Neon in the Volii system. Be careful though, the volatile explosion can also hurt your character, so keep a safe distance.
Rapidshot
Staying with the shotgun theme, head over to UC Distribution Center in the New Atlantis commercial district.
Here you'll find a unique version of the Breach archetype of riot shotgun, called Rapidshot. There's not much else to say other than it deals a high amount of damage, rapidly.
Shotguns are a lot of fun to use in Starfield, but their leisurely rate-of-fire and pedestrian reload time can easily leave you in the lurch - particularly with melee enemies. Rapidshot goes some way to rectifying that problem while looking cool doing it too!
Syndicate Enforcer/Wakizashi
In the cyberpunk city of Neon, it's only fair that you can become a street samurai.
If you're looking for a sleek and unique melee option for your character, look no further than the Wakizashi sword and its unique variant, the Syndicate Enforcer. I've included both the base and epic versions here because it seems like this is a weapon archetype you can only find in Neon.
A Wakizashi is not a katana. Despite the visual similarity, this is a medium length Japanese sword that sits between a katana and a tanto knife. However, it's just as deadly as either.
To get the base Wakizashi, visit Madame Sauvage's Place in Ebbside in Neon. There you can speak to Andrea Sandoval and join up with the Strikers, a gang of street thugs locked in a turf war with some even nastier customers. Follow this quest line and you will eventually get access to a special faction shop where you can buy the sword.
To get the Syndicate Enforcer version, follow the Ryujin Industries quest line until you reach the mission Guilty Parties. Here you will be asked to infiltrate the Seokguh Syndicate Hideout. Inside the hideout there will be a conspicuous large weapon case with the sword inside.
Jake's Hangover Cure
This is an awesome unique weapon that's hiding in plain sight behind the bar in Jake's Bar in The Well in New Atlantis.
It's a particle beam shotgun, meaning it deals both physical and energy damage - great for hybrid builds.
However, the catch is that you will have to steal it without being detected, which is tough when no one ever sleeps in Starfield. Therefore, you will probably have to wait until you've leveled up your stealth and concealment skills - or got a chameleon camouflag armor piece - to blend in.
Unless you just want to take the bounty and go on the lam, that is!
Revenant
The Revenant is a rifle for those who like the upmost precision and damage capacity when taking on fights. It features an extended magazine, a titanium build, and has the Lacerate modifier which applies bleed to any enemies you hit with it!
This rifle is picked up during the 'Eye of the Storm' quest, which is late in the Crimson Fleet questline. During the quest, you'll wind up in the Vault Control Center of a spaceship, with a corpse nearby. Here, you'll have to insert data modules into a module lock; just beside the module will be the Revenant rifle, free for the taking.
Shattered Shock
The Shattered Shock is a heavy weapon that packs a punch. While it has an exceptionally high physical damage output, it also has the 'Shattering' modifier, which means that the weapon is capable of puncturing even the strongest of armor. So, if your opponents are heavily-armoured, this weapon is brilliant - and brutal - in combat. It also can be picked up with the following mods already installed: long barrel, short scope, and tactical stock.
To get your hands on the Shattered Shock, you'll want to make a start on the UC Vanguard's questline. During one of the later quests, 'Hostile Intelligence', you'll have to collect Aceles samples from multiple crates inside and around an Abandoned Processing Plant. The Shattered Shock can be found in one of these crates, alongside the samples, so you'll have no issue tracking it down.
Unfair Advantage
The Unfair Advantage weapon is one hell of a pistol. It also boasts a dozen mods and the Radioactive modifier, making it rather showy. The Radioactive modifier will randomly deal radioactive damage to targets and demoralise them.
Mods you can also look forward to on this pistol are a Short Barrel, Laser Sight, Reflex Sight, Compensator, Tactical Grip, and Binary Trigger. So, if you're a sucker for a satisfying headshot, you're going to love Unfair Advantage.
That said, getting your hands on it means infilitrating the Crimson Fleet as part of the UC SysDef. Towards the end of the Crimson Fleet questline, during the 'Eye of the Storm' quest, you'll have an important decision to make, and that's who to ultimately side with.
As explained in our quest guide, unless your morals scream otherwise, siding with the Crimson Fleet is a good idea as their smuggling missions and access to The Key is rather useful in Starfield. Additionally, if you side with the Fleet and kill UC Commander Kibwe, you'll find the Unfair Advantage weapon on his body. Sorry Kibwe, but we did what we had to do!
That's it for our picks of the best weapons, if you need more help, check-out our guides to the best armor sets, best mods and best traits.