Borderlands offers a unique First Person Shooter / Role Playing Game blend with intense action. It features online cooperative multiplayer for up to 4 players just like Halo 3. But, instead of featuring an epic campaign like most FPS games, Borderlands features a mission-based, action RPG with experience points, 4 different character classes, leveling up, skill points distributed across three branches, and loads of loot. Borderlands if available on Xbox 360, PC, and PS3.
The following strategy guide offers information on the weapons in Borderlands, including how weapons are generated, the weapons manufacturers, elemental effects, manufacturer grades, and more.
How Weapons are Generated in Borderlands
Every weapon in Borderlands is created with up to 7 weapon components: Stock, Body, Barrel, Magazine, Scope, Materials, Accessory. Nine weapons manufacturers create the weapons: Tediore, Vladof, Dahl, S&S Munitions, Maliwan, Torque, Jakobs, Atlas, Hyperion, each with their own unique focus. On top of all that, there's 10 different weapon types: Repeater Pistols, Machine Pistols, Revolver Pistols, Combat Shotguns, Assault Shotguns, Patrol SMGs, Combat Rifles, Sniper Rifles, Semi-Auto Sniper Rifles, and Rocket Launchers.
This extensive set of variables offers a grand total of over 15 million weapons in Borderlands. Fortunately, much of the weapon's creation and generation happens in the background. A player using The Hunter class does not have to analyze every sniper rifle's scope to determine whether or not it is better, as the weapon description conveniently displays the amount of zoom available.
Borderlands Weapon Types
Perhaps the most important element of a weapon is the weapon type, since each character gains proficiency with repeated use, and many classes offer skills which give special bonuses to specific weapon types.
- Repeater (Pistol): Semi-automatic handgun with typically slow fire-rate but quick reload speed
- Machine (Pistol): Handgun which shoots bursts of bullets for a higher fire rate than a Repeater
- Revolver (Pistol): High accuracy and damage for a handgun, but slower rate of fire / reload speed
- Combat (Shotgun): Single-fire shotgun with slow rate of fire but high damage
- Assault (Shotgun): Shotgun type that offers with higher rate of fire but typically less damage
- Patrol SMG: Fully-automatic mini-machine gun, good balance of all traits
- Combat Rifles: Automatic machine gun with good damage potential but high recoil
- Sniper Rifles: Single-shot sniper rifle offers huge damage and accuracy but slow reload speed
- Semi-Auto Sniper Rifles: Less power, but offer a much higher firing rate and magazine count
- Rocket Launchers: Launches explosive rockets which can deal high damage to multiple targets
The Soldier class prefers Shotguns and Assault Rifles, the Siren class prefers SMGs, the Hunter class prefers Sniper Rifles and Pistols (Repeater, Machine, and Revolver varieties) and The Berserker prefers Rocket Launchers.
List of Weapons Manufacturers in Borderlands
The following is a list of all the Borderlands Weapons Manufacturers.
- Tediore - Fast Reload
- Vladof - Quick Firing Rate
- Dahl - Accurate
- S&S Munitions - High Magazine Capacity
- Maliwan - Greater Elemental Multipliers
- Torque - Huge Damage
- Jakobs - Huge Damage
- Atlus - (Rare) High rate of fire and damage
- Hyperion - (Rare) Unparalleled accuracy
In reality, the manufacturer type does not matter significantly, even though players will very likely develop their own favorites over the course of the game. Each individual weapon's level, components, and weapon grade offer a more reliable means of judgment.
List of Manufacturer Weapon Grades and Model Names
Weapon grades offer a quick and easy means of determining the general potency of a weapon.
- Level 0: Cheap, Surplus, Rusty, Old, Obsolete, Weaksauce, Plywood, Puny, Substandard
- Level 1 to 12: (no grade)
- Level 13 to 21: Value, Peasants, Mercenary, Revised, Standard, Power, Classic, Champion, Valde
- Level 22 to 30: Special, Peoples, Soldier, Upgraded, Sterling, Force, Vintage, Heroic, Melior
- Level 31 to 39: Super, Workers, Freelancer, Enhanced, Prototype, Excellent, Choice, Herculean, Ultra
- Level 40 to 49: Limited, Soldiers, Veteran, Faultless, Paradigm, Awesome, Antique, Legendary, Magnus
- Level 50: Supreme, Patriots, Elite, Perfect, Pure, Ultimate, Original, Titan, Optimus
While the Weapon grade quickly shows the range of the level, the Model name indicates the rarity of the weapon. Common weapons do not have model names, and Torque and Atlus manufacturers do not give model names for any of their weapons.
- Tediore: Uncommon - -A, Rare - -B
- Vladof: Uncommon - /V2, Rare - /V
- Dahl: Uncommon - U, Rare - D
- S&S: Uncommon - .2, Rare - .3
- Maliwan: Uncommon - B, Rare - C
- Jakobs: Uncommon - ZZ, Rare - XX
- Hyperion: Uncommon - .W, Rare .G
Borderlands Weapon Guide Conclusion
In the end, the best means of judging a weapon is to simply use it. Even with the multiple ways to determine a weapon's value, there's no telling how all those variables will come through until the trigger is pulled.
Interested in more information on the other classes in Borderlands? Then check out the Borderlands Class Guide, or check out Borderlands Equipment Guide, for more strategies on Borderlands. Interested in a list of video game blogs? Then check out this article listing the Top 5 Video Game Blogs.
Bradley Kairis - Bradley Kairis loves games, comedy, technology, politics, news and journalism. From the endlessly intricate strategies of Magic the ...
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