It’s a frustration every Wuthering Waves player has faced at least once: you line up a perfect combo against a high-level overworld boss, only to see your damage tickle their health bar because your 3-star starter weapon can’t keep up. If you’re wondering how to get better weapons in Wuthering Waves to fix this exact problem, you’re in the right place. I’ve logged over 220 hours across two accounts (one F2P, one low spender) and tested every weapon acquisition method in the game, so this guide only includes strategies that actually work, no fluff or exploit hacks. You don’t have to drop hundreds of dollars on gacha pulls to get gear that lets you clear all endgame content, either.
How to Get Better Weapons in Wuthering Waves: Start With Overworld Boss and Elite Mob Farming
One of the most reliable free ways to get high-tier weapons is farming the game’s open world enemies, no gacha pulls required. Tacet Field bosses, the high-difficulty endgame bosses unlocked at AR 35, have a 12% chance to drop exclusive 5-star weapons tailored to specific elements and playstyles every time you spend 30 resin to claim their rewards. For example, the Inferno Hound boss drops a 5-star greatsword that boosts pyro damage by 40% when the user is below 50% health, perfect for aggressive pyro DPS builds.
You don’t have to spend resin to get good gear, though. Elite mobs marked with red skulls scattered across the map respawn every 12 hours, and they have a 8% chance to drop 4-star weapons and ascension materials for free, no resin cost. I usually spend 20 minutes every other day farming the 7 elite mobs near the Jinzhou fast travel point, and I average one 4-star weapon per week just from that small time investment. Just make sure you check the enemy drop list before you start farming, so you don’t waste time fighting mobs that don’t drop the weapon type you need for your main team.
Use the Weapon Banner System Wisely to Grab Limited 5-Star Gear
If you have saved up intertwined fates and want to chase a limited 5-star weapon that’s BiS for your main carry, the featured weapon banner is the place to go. But you need to play the system smart to avoid wasting pulls, because gacha can be brutal if you don’t know the rules. First, pity counters carry over between weapon banners, so you don’t lose your progress if you skip a banner to save for a later one. Second, always use the epitomized path system before you start pulling: this lets you select the specific weapon you want, and after two off-banner 5-star drops, you’re guaranteed to get the one you picked.
So many new players waste their pulls on the standard banner hoping for 5-star weapons, but that’s a mistake. The standard banner has a massive pool of drops, including characters, weapons, and materials, so your odds of getting the specific weapon you want are less than 1%. F2P players earn roughly 10 intertwined fates per month from daily commissions, events, and battle pass rewards, so you can save for 3 to 4 months to guarantee a limited 5-star weapon if you plan ahead. Only pull on a weapon banner if the featured weapon is a direct upgrade for your main DPS, don’t pull just because it’s a shiny 5-star that you might use someday.
Complete Reputation Quests and Limited Events for Free Exclusive Weapons
Most new players overlook reputation quests and events, but they’re the easiest way to get powerful 4-star weapons that are often better than gacha 4-stars for specific builds. Each region has a reputation system that you level up by completing weekly bounties and world quests, and you get a free exclusive 4-star weapon at reputation level 4 and 7 for each region. These weapons have unique passives that are tailored to the region’s common character playstyles, and you can refine them for free by doing extra reputation tasks.
Limited time events are even better, because they almost always give a free fully upgradable 4-star weapon as a reward for clearing low-difficulty challenge stages. Some of the best weapons in the game right now are event exclusives that you can’t get anywhere else. Here are three of the top free weapons you can earn right now without any gacha pulls:
- Cloudsoar Rapier: Reward for reaching Jinzhou reputation level 7, gives a 25% damage boost to normal and charged attacks for 8 seconds after using an elemental skill, perfect for quickswap DPS characters like Jiyan
- Echoing Harp: Free reward from the Music of the Tides limited event, boosts off-field elemental burst damage by 35%, making it BiS for most support characters that stay off-field for most of the fight
- Ironclad Greatsword: Reward for clearing the Prologue hard mode story quest, increases shatter damage by 50% and gives a 20% defense boost when the user is holding a shield, ideal for tank characters like Verina
Don’t skip daily commissions either. Daily commission reward crates have a small chance to drop 4-star weapon crates, even for high AR players. I got a 4-star catalyst from a random daily crate last month, no extra grind required, and it’s now my main support’s go-to weapon.
Ascend and Refine Your Existing Weapons to Boost Their Power Without New Drops
A lot of players get caught up chasing new 5-star weapons, but they forget that a properly upgraded 4-star weapon can outperform a level 1 5-star weapon by a huge margin. Before you spend hours farming or saving pulls for a new weapon, first make sure you’re getting the most out of the gear you already own. Ascending a weapon to its max level boosts its base attack by over 200% in most cases, and it unlocks extra stat bonuses like crit rate or elemental damage.
Refinement materials are also easy to farm, and refining a weapon to level 5 doubles its passive effect in almost all cases. For example, a level 5 refined Cloudsoar Rapier gives a 50% damage boost to normal attacks after using a skill, which is better than most unrefined 5-star weapons for quickswap builds. Don’t waste ascension materials on weapons you’re only going to use for a week, though. Wait until you have a weapon that you plan to keep for at least two AR levels before you invest in upgrading it. My first 4-star sword I ascended to level 70, and it carried me all the way from AR 30 to AR 45, so it was well worth the investment.
At the end of the day, how to get better weapons in Wuthering Waves all comes down to prioritizing the activities that match your playstyle and team comp. You don’t have to be a whale to get strong gear: F2P players can easily clear all endgame content with free event and reputation weapons if they upgrade them properly. Don’t chase meta weapons just because you see other players using them, either. The best weapon for you is the one that works best with your favorite characters and the way you like to play the game.