The first and final DLC forCyberpunk 2077, Phantom Liberty, isn’t just bringing with it a brand new spy-thriller story and a giant cast of new characters to interact with, it also introduces some extremely fun and incredibly powerful weapons to play around with. A lot of these guns can be acquired after finishingcertain questsscattered around the new area of Dogtown, but there are some others thatCD Projekt REDhas purposefully hidden away to be a little more obscure.
It’s still very much worth seeking out these weapons though since they can help make both the Phantom Liberty and base-game quests much easier and a whole lot more fun. These are theweapons introduced inCyberpunk 2077’sbrand new DLCwhich have stood out for their stats, fun factor, and reliability in the long term.
7Dezerter Shotgun
How to unlock:Can be looted during the Addicted to Chaos mission.
Stats:
The Dezerter shotgun is the very definition of a double-edged sword in the sense that while it’s incredibly powerful, even against heavily armored enemies, the catch is that it will set V on fire every time he takes down an enemy. This can becomeannoying very quickly, but luckily, the flames won’t activate if V is in low health, so there’s no chance of it killing him by accident.
Still though, because of this pretty big drawback, it’s best to only use the Dezerter in small bursts when atanky enemycomes around the corner. Rather than using up a ton of handgun or SMG ammo to take them down, simply fire a few Dezerter rounds, and the target will be blown to smithereens in a matter of seconds. It also needs to be said that if the flames don’t engulf V because they’re on low health, it will instead grant a movement buff and increase Mitigation chance, so it can also be used as a last-resort weapon to get out of a sticky situation. Still, there’s no mistaking that this is one of the most fun new weapons for those who love a run-and-gun playstyle.
6Hercules 3AX
How to unlock:Found in the armory during the Roads to Redemption side quest.
A Smart Ammo assault rifle that can inflict poison on enemies might just be one of the most creative weapons CD Projekt RED has ever come up with, and it’sjust as fun to use as it sounds. What makes the gun especially effective, aside from the fact that it can easily melt health bars due to the poison, is the fact that killing enemies inflicted by the status effect will cause them to explode, leaving behind a pool of lethal acid to spread to their allies.
Additionally, those affected by poison are much more susceptible to critical hits, so it’s easy toimagine the sheer amount of mayhemthis gun can cause when everyone in a room is infected. The reload speed does limit the weapon a little bit, but it doesn’t really matter too much considering how easily it can wipe out entire groups of enemies in little to no time.
5Ambition
How to unlock:Given as a reward from Hasan during the Go Your Own Way side quest.
On the surface, Ambition may look likeany old handgunthat one could find being sold in a corner shop in Night City, but what really helps it stand out is that each shot has a good chance to blind enemies upon impact. The charge time is also incredibly short, so there’s no need to wait around too long before taking out an area full of enemies, and the high headshot damage paired with good accuracy and stability makes it ideal for strategical players who like carefully placing their shots.
Players should be aware that to be able to go through theGo Your Own Way side questwhere this gun can be obtained, they will first need to complete the Prototype In The Scraper quest. This can be found pretty early on in the DLC in the Pacifica region of Dogtown.
4Rasetsu
How to unlock:Obtained automatically after the sniper overwatch section in the You Know My Name quest.
The Rasetsu is an incredibly effective weapon forstealth builds, and undoubtedly one of the most fun rifles in the entire game to use. While it will need to be charged before being fired, each round will fire straight through enemies before bouncing around to hit other nearby targets. It can therefore cause some chaos incredibly quickly with a single shot, and can even take down armored enemies with barely any trouble.
Thanks to the overhauled skill tree added in update 2.0, and the Relic skill tree which is exclusive to Phantom Liberty, building a stealth build is much more viable than it was before, and the Rasetsu fits intothis kind of playstyleextremely easily. It might not be suitable for every gunfight, but anyone who likes the idea of creeping around the dark streets of Dogtown and picking off enemies from the shadows definitely needs to obtain the Rasetsu as soon as possible.
3Volkodav
How to unlock:Found in one of the crates before reaching the garage during Waiting for Dodge side mission.
Considering the description of the Volkodav literally says that the giant machete was banned because of “humanitarian concerns”, it’s easy to imagine just how devastating it is in practice, especially since it’s capable of setting its targets on fire. On top of the fairly high chance to burn enemies, the Volkodav also has extremely high base damage as it is, making it a very reliable and useful weapon for all close combat scenarios.
It might struggle a little with armored enemies, but after enough whacks, it will eventually set them alight anyway. It’s also worth noting that shooting enemies after they have been burned by the Volkodav will always result in a critical hit, so an effective strategy can be switching between the machete and a gun on the fly to quickly take down targets. On the other hand, swinging around the Volkodav like there’s no tomorrow and lighting the room ablaze is also an effective approach.
2Pizdets
How to unlock:Can be picked up from Boris Ribakov in the Spy in the Jungle side quest.
Considering that the Pizdets Smart SMG already has a staggeringly high fire rate, it can essentially become a Gatling gun after landing a few shots and ramping up the speed tremendously. Luckily, the gun also has barely any recoil to speak of and is easy to handle thanks to the Smart Ammo, so the player won’t even need to worry too much about being deadly accurate with their shots.
It might not be able to penetrate armor, but the amount of damage it can dish out and the incredibly high fire rate help to counteract this, making it great for both regular street fights andmore challenging encountersduring the main story. The Spy in the Jungle gig will only be accessible after completing The Damned main mission, but this is only the fifth mission in the primary questline, so the gun can be obtained pretty early on.
1Her Majesty
How to unlock:Given to V by Alex during the Get It Together story mission.
Her Majesty is a sidearm that could be considered game-breaking in more than a few ways, but it needs to be used while sneaking around for it to be fully effective. However, if players do stay out of sight, they will be able to land guaranteed critical hits when the Optical Camo is active, and since a silencer is already equipped, it makes it all so easy to clear out hordes of enemies without anyone having a clue what just happened.
Aiming for the head is always for the best since this will ensure an enemy goes down in one shot no matter what, but considering just how deadly accurate it already is, there’s essentially no chance of missing a shot anyway. Her Majesty is a weapon that players should always keep handy, especially for those longer andmore arduous stealth missions.
