New World weapons tier list: Best weapons in New World Rise of the Angry Earth

New World is so back. The game’s first expansion, Rise of the Angry Earth, just launched yesterday, Oct. 3, and players are returning to the MMO in droves. 

If you gave up on New World after its admittedly lackluster launch back in the autumn of 2021 but are coming back to the game now, you’ll notice that a lot has changed since the game first came out. Apart from the completely revamped campaign, New World has added several new trade skills, as well as some new weapons into the mix. These weapons, including the new Flail, have all shaken up the meta, mostly by giving players even more options when it comes to customizing their builds. 

Whether you’re leveling a new character, getting back into the game, or progressing through the end game, we recommend trying out all of the weapons available to you in New World until you find one that you’re very comfortable with. 

Here’s how all of the weapons in New World stack up against one another in a tier list format. 

New World S-tier weapons

• Rapier
• Fire Staff
• Life Staff
• Sword and Shield

These four weapons are the best possible options at each of the game’s four roles, with the Rapier being the best melee DPS weapon, the Fire Staff being the best ranged DPS option, and the Life Staff and Sword/Shield being the go-to weapons for healers and tanks, respectively. 

Among these four top-tier weapons, the Rapier is the one that has the most value as it has more DPS attached to it than any other weapon in the game. Between its standard slashing damage and mounting damage-over-time through bleed effects, the Rapier is consistently near the top of New World’s meta.

Having a skilled Rapier player in your group is a must. But even if you’re a player who’s looking to get back into New World and might have some rust to shake off, the floor of the Rapier is relatively forgiving enough to allow you to still deal a competitive amount of DPS. The same can be said for the Fire Staff, which has enough innate damage to consistently keep your throughput high as a ranged player. 

New World A-tier weapons

• Greatsword
• Spear
• Ice Gauntlet

These three weapons are the next-best options in the current New World meta, with the Greatsword and Spear being relatively strong melee options, and the Ice Gauntlet being a versatile ranged weapon. If you’re the type of player who likes to lock down enemies and burst them down, the Ice Gauntlet would be for you. Alternatively, there’s nothing more satisfying than a late-level Greatsword build that allows you to deal monstrous damage with each heavy swing. These weapons will allow you to be slightly ahead of the curve without courting accusations of being a meta-abuser. 

New World B-tier weapons

• Great Axe
• Bow
• Blunderbuss
• Void Gauntlet
• Flail
• Hatchet

All of these weapons are fairly balanced and are strong enough in the right hands. While they’re not going to be as lethal as some of the options at the top of this list, you’ll still be able to pack a punch, especially if you invest enough time with them while leveling. Experience with a weapon and its rotation of abilities is one of the strongest advantages you can have in New World. After all, New World is at its most fun when you’re trying out all of the weapons that the game has to offer, and playing something that’s balanced while leveling will give you a feel of how the game is really meant to be played. 

From this tier, we recommend the Great Axe, Blunderbuss, and Bow as they’re the weapons with the least intense learning curve. The Flail, which was introduced with Rise of the Angry Earth, also finds itself in this mid-tier, largely because we haven’t seen enough of a sample size to determine if it’s strong or weak. 

New World C-tier weapons

• Musket
• Warhammer

The Musket and the Warhammer are the worst-available ranged and melee weapons in the game, respectively. While they’re still not totally useless in the hands of the right player, these weapons are a bit slower than most, and the amount of effort you’ll need to put in if you want to keep up with other players using more prolific options doesn’t outweigh the reward.