Best guns in Borderlands 4 for early & late game

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Borderlands 4 throws a mountain of great guns at you, but not all of them are worth the grind.

Rare items can appear early on from simple enemies, or be hidden away until the very end of the game. The biggest challenge is deciding which ones are actually worth the effort to find. It’s easy to waste time searching for powerful gear, only to discover it’s weak or doesn’t improve as you play.

Look, I’ve spent *way* too many hours running the same content over and over, so I figured I’d share what weapons I’ve found are seriously powerful, whether you’re just starting out or deep into the endgame. I want to save you some frustration and wasted time!

Best early game legendaries in Borderlands 4

Lead Balloon

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  • Weapon type: Shotgun
  • Manufacturer: Torgue
  • How to get it: Drops in the Splashzone boss area in Fade Fields.

The Splashzone shotgun fires powerful blasts that hit a wide area. What sets it apart from many other early-game shotguns is that its damage stays effective even as you progress into the mid-game, making it useful for fighting both groups of enemies and tough bosses.

This weapon’s projectiles can be infused with any element, allowing it to effectively target enemies with various weaknesses without requiring different types of ammunition.

Bully

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  • Weapon type: Rifle
  • Manufacturer: Order
  • How to get it: Dropped by the Core Observer in the Black Lime Bunker once you unlock the area through the story.

This versatile option offers a unique advantage: whenever you break an enemy’s shields while aiming, it automatically deploys a drone every 14 seconds to provide extra attack power. Combined with its reliable stats, it’s a consistently strong choice as you progress through the game.

Darkbeast

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  • Weapon type: SMG
  • Manufacturer: Dadedalus
  • How to get it: Dropped by Quake Thrasher inside Timid Kyle’s Neglected Opening, a main story area.

Okay, so the Dark Beast SMG is seriously awesome! It always does corrosive damage, which is great for taking down armored enemies. Plus, the bullets go right *through* enemies, and there’s even a 5% chance each bullet will explode! That means if you’re firing at a group, it can really add up and deal a ton of damage – it’s amazing for clearing out hordes.

The piercing ability lets you damage enemies lined up in a row, and the explosion effect boosts your damage to both groups of enemies and heavily armored bosses.

Aegon’s Dream

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  • Weapon type: Assault Rifle
  • Manufacturer: Vladof
  • How to get it: Dropped by Horace, one of the first major bosses in the campaign, located in the Fade Fields.

Okay, so I’ve been playing around with Aegon’s Dream, and it’s seriously good. What I love is how fast it fires, but it’s not just about speed – you can switch between fire and ice ammo. That means I can really adapt to whatever I’m fighting, whether it’s a tough, armored enemy or something with a lot of health. It’s a really versatile weapon!

This weapon’s upgrade gives it a 30% chance to fire an extra bullet with each shot, making its damage output higher than other similar assault rifles. It also has an alternate firing mode that uses a second barrel to significantly increase its rate of fire.

Noisy Cricket

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  • Weapon type: Pistol
  • Manufacturer: Order
  • How to get it: Dropped by Sydney Pointy Legs at the drill site in the Hungering Plains.

The Noisy Cricket launches focused sound waves that cause impact damage. While the projectiles are tiny, they create a wide blast radius when they hit the ground, so aiming at an enemy’s feet is usually the most effective way to inflict the most damage.

This pistol’s wave attack can damage several enemies simultaneously, making it great for crowd control. It also boasts some of the highest damage output for early-game weapons and stays effective even in the later stages of the game, unlike many other starting pistols.

Best late game legendaries in Borderlands 4

Bugbear

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Weapon type: Splash Rifle

  • Manufacturer: Torgue
  • How to get it: Dropped by Bio-Thresher Omega in the Dominion section of the map.

The Bugbear is a powerful weapon that deals significant splash damage. Its Rotary Gun perk increases its damage and explosion size as you use it, so the last few shots in each magazine are its strongest.

This weapon has a secondary attack that calls down an airstrike on the targeted area, causing significantly more damage than regular attacks. This makes it effective against both groups of enemies and single, powerful bosses.

Rainbow Vomit

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  • Weapon type: Splash Rifle
  • Manufacturer: Jakobs
  • How to get it: Obtained via completing the weekly Wildcard missions.

Okay, so the Rainbow Vomit gun is *amazing*. It shoots bullets that hit enemies with corrosion, shock, and fire – all at the same time! And because it’s made with Jakobs technology, the bullets bounce off your first target and onto others, spreading those nasty status effects around. It’s perfect for taking down groups of enemies!

This weapon is unique because it can inflict three different elements simultaneously, making it perfect for characters focused on building up elemental effects.

Hot Slugger

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  • Weapon type: Splash Rifle
  • Manufacturer: Jakobs
  • How to get it: Unlock the Bones of Sanctuary by finishing the campaign, then enter Craven’s Nook via the vent to defeat the bunker boss for the farm.

Okay, so Hot Slugger has this awesome ability – every time you get a kill, you deal 30% more damage for ten seconds! And it gets even better – you can stack that effect up to three times, meaning you could end up doing a whopping 90% more damage! It’s seriously powerful if you can keep getting kills.

As a Jakobs-brand weapon, every critical hit causes a bullet to bounce to a new target, spreading damage to nearby enemies. This is especially useful when fighting groups, as quick kills trigger a chain reaction of damage.

Armored Bod

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  • Weapon type: All
  • Manufacturer: Many
  • How to get it: Dropped by Axemaul in Dominion, found in the abandoned Orga mine in the Carcadia district.

The Armored Bod’s All-Rounder perk makes the weapon function as if it were a shotgun, assault rifle, SMG, sniper rifle, *and* a pistol all at once. This means any special abilities or bonuses you have that normally work with those specific weapon types will also apply to this versatile gun.

When used in its alternate fire mode, the SMG transforms into a fully automatic shotgun that uses standard SMG ammo. This unique ability provides nearly unlimited firepower, making it a highly versatile choice for players who like to mix different playstyles.

Streamer

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  • Weapon type: Heavy Weapon
  • Manufacturer: Rirror
  • How to get it: Dropped by the Oppressor boss in the Fade Fields.

The Streamer launches fixed projectiles that release ongoing energy beams lasting between 2 and 3 seconds. These beams can overlap, increasing damage where they intersect.

This weapon is incredibly powerful against tough enemies and those with strong armor, particularly when used with a good strategy. It’s available in various elemental types, making it adaptable to many different character builds.

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2025-09-15 18:56