Here is my straightforward ranking of the strongest weapons in Windrose right now.
For late game, my top pick is Rapier of Devastation. For ranged play, Reliable Musket is the cleanest main weapon. As a support weapon, Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol is very strong.
Up through the Foothills, Rapier of a Thousand Cuts is also excellent. Its bleed damage is easy to understand and stays useful for a while.
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Best weapons ranking
| Rank | Weapon | Why it is strong | Damage note | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rapier of Devastation | Plague Marks, heavy attack, 40% heal | 210 Pierce + mark bonus | S |
| 2 | Reliable Musket | 600 Pierce, faster reload, safe ranged damage | 600 Pierce / 690 with Vulnerability | S |
| 3 | Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol | Two shots, 15% Vulnerability, boosts the main hand | 420×2 = 840 | S |
| 4 | Plague Halberd | 355 Crude, special attack, 35% heal | 355 Crude | A |
| 5 | Rapier of a Thousand Cuts | Strong bleed, very good through the Foothills | 125 bleed damage/sec, 1250 over 10s | A |
| 6 | Reliable Pistol | Three shots, good exploration weapon | 380×3 = 1140 | A |
| 7 | Cutlass | Up to +90% shot bonus | Reliable Musket can reach 1140 | B |
| 8 | Dragon’s Breath | Extra fire damage and fiery explosion | better for groups | B |
| 9 | Soul Eater | Life-draining special attack | 3-minute cooldown | B |
The numbers come from Windrose DB v0.10.0.7.33-372c3516 and the Japanese Windrose Database.
Damage over 5 and 10 seconds
Bleed is much easier to understand when it is shown over time.
Rapier of a Thousand Cuts reaches 25×5 = 125 damage per second at 5 bleed stacks. That becomes 625 damage over 5 seconds, 1250 over 10 seconds, and 1875 over 15 seconds.
| State | Per second | 5 sec | 10 sec | 15 sec |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 bleed stacks | 125 | 625 | 1250 | 1875 |
| 5 bleed stacks + 15% Vulnerability | 143.75 | ~719 | ~1438 | ~2156 |
With Vulnerability from Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol, the 10-second bleed total goes from 1250 → about 1438. This is why Rapier of a Thousand Cuts feels so good around the Foothills.
For short fights, the opening burst from guns is easier to compare.
| Weapon / combo | Immediate damage |
|---|---|
| Reliable Musket, 1 shot | 600 |
| Reliable Musket, 1 shot + Vulnerability | 690 |
| Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol burst | 840 |
| Reliable Pistol, 3-shot burst | 1140 |
| Max-stack Cutlass + Reliable Musket | 1140 |
If an enemy dies in around 5 seconds, Reliable Pistol or Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol feels great. If the fight goes 10 seconds or longer, bleed from Rapier of a Thousand Cuts and mark cash-outs from Rapier of Devastation start to matter more.
1st: Rapier of Devastation
For late-game melee, I would start with Rapier of Devastation.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 210 Pierce. The raw hit looks lower than Reliable Musket’s 600 Pierce or Plague Halberd’s 355 Crude.
It still wins for me because the light-attack and heavy-attack loop fits boss fights.
- light attacks apply up to 8 Plague Marks
- heavy attacks consume the marks and deal bonus damage
- the Epic effect restores 40% max health when consuming more than 5 marks
Damage and healing are part of the same flow. If Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol applies Vulnerability first, the heavy attack gets even better.
It is not a weapon that solves everything by swinging randomly, but as a late-game main weapon it is my favorite.
2nd: Reliable Musket
For ranged weapons, Reliable Musket is strong.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 600 Pierce. Among the Rare weapons I checked, that is a very high single-hit value. The Japanese database also says it reloads faster than other muskets.
With Vulnerability applied first, one shot is 600×1.15=690.
The best part is that you can deal real damage without forcing melee range. If you want to play safer, Reliable Musket can easily be the main weapon instead of Rapier of Devastation.
3rd: Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol
Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol is less of a main weapon and more of a weapon that makes your best weapon hit harder.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 420 Pierce. Since it fires two shots, its magazine burst is 420×2=840. That is already decent.
Its Epic effect is the bigger deal: shots apply Vulnerability. Damage dealt to that target increases by 15%.
| Next hit | Normal | With Vulnerability |
|---|---|---|
| Reliable Musket, 1 shot | 600 | 600×1.15=690 |
| A 1000-damage combo | 1000 | 1000×1.15=1150 |
| 125 DPS worth of bleed | 125 | 125×1.15=143.75 |
Whether the main weapon is Rapier of Devastation, Reliable Musket, or Plague Halberd, this pistol is a very good partner. It is also worth upgrading to Epic.
4th: Plague Halberd
If you like heavy melee, Plague Halberd is the pick.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 355 Crude. Damaging enemies grants one Plague Echo stack, and at 5 stacks the special attack [F] becomes available.
The Epic effect immediately restores 35% max health when that special attack is used.
It loses to Reliable Musket on raw single-hit damage, but it gives you healing that helps you keep fighting. It feels best against slower enemies or messy group fights.
5th: Rapier of a Thousand Cuts
Through the Foothills, Rapier of a Thousand Cuts is very good.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 125 Pierce. The single hit is low, but the bleed is strong. Bleed stacks up to 5 times, and each stack deals 25 damage per second.
At max stacks, that is 25×5 = 125 damage per second. If it keeps ticking for 10 seconds, that is 1250 damage. With Vulnerability, it reaches about 1438.
With bleed included, this weapon is easy to recommend. Its Epic effect also restores Temporal Health from bleed damage while the weapon is equipped.
I see it less as the final late-game main weapon and more as a weapon that makes early and mid game much smoother. If you are playing melee, upgrading it to Epic is not a bad call.
Useful exploration weapons
Reliable Pistol
Reliable Pistol is great for exploration and trash clearing.
At item level 15, it has 380 attack power / 380 Pierce. It can fire three shots without reloading, so its magazine burst is 380×3=1140.
That burst is high. I do not treat it as the final main weapon, but it is very comfortable during normal exploration.
Cutlass
Cutlass applies Take Aim! on hit, stacking up to 9 times. The next shot gains 10% bonus damage per stack.
At full stacks, that is +90%. With Reliable Musket, the simple math becomes 600×1.9=1140.
It has a fun ceiling. For normal use, though, Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol applying Vulnerability is easier.
Dragon’s Breath
Dragon’s Breath has a 40% chance to deal extra fire damage at Rare, and a 60% chance to cause a fiery explosion at Epic.
I see it more as a group-fight weapon than a main single-target weapon. When the fire explosion lands well, it should feel great.
Soul Eater
Soul Eater has an appealing life-draining special attack, but the current Windrose DB shows a 3-minute cooldown.
I would treat it as an emergency button or group-fight backup rather than an everyday DPS weapon.
Epic upgrade priority
If I am spending Epic materials, this is my order.
| Priority | Weapon | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rapier of Devastation | late-game melee main, with healing |
| 2 | Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol | 15% Vulnerability works with almost everything |
| 3 | Reliable Musket | can be the main weapon for ranged play |
| 4 | Rapier of a Thousand Cuts | strong bleed through the Foothills |
| 5 | Plague Halberd | good if you like heavy melee |
For melee, I like Rapier of Devastation plus Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol. For ranged play, Reliable Musket plus Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol is the easiest pairing.
If you are stuck around the Foothills, upgrading Rapier of a Thousand Cuts and letting bleed do the work is also very reasonable.
Sources
- Official Steam news: Windrose
- Windrose DB: all weapons
- Windrose DB: Rapier of Devastation
- Windrose DB: Rapier of a Thousand Cuts
- Windrose DB: Reliable Musket
- Windrose DB: Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol
- Windrose DB: Plague Halberd
- Windrose DB: Reliable Pistol
- Windrose DB: Dragon’s Breath
- Windrose DB: Soul Eater
- Japanese Windrose Database: Rapier of Devastation
- Japanese Windrose Database: Plague Halberd
- Japanese Windrose Database: Reliable Musket
- Japanese Windrose Database: Drake’s Double-Barreled Pistol
- Japanese Windrose Database: Rapier of a Thousand Cuts
- Method: Windrose weapon ranking article
