Best Weapons In Fortnite History, Ranked

Fortnite has a long history spanning numerous chapters and seasons, all of which provide varying themes, mechanics, renditions of the Fortnite Island, and more. Looking back through Fortnite’s seasons is nostalgic, to say the least, as the game has changed drastically over the years, bringing about stellar items and additions to the loot pool.

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The loot pool of Fortnite is constantly changing and evolving, with the debut and removal of various weapons each season. Wacky and iconic weapons have come and gone throughout the years, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. From the Rocket Launcher to the Assault Rifle, here are the best weapons in Fortnite’s history.

Updated on December 21, 2024, by Nathan Round: Fortnite’s loot pool has changed drastically with each passing season, leading to some additional weapons taking the spotlight. We have updated this list with additional entries, showcasing some of the best weapons in Fortnite’s history from Chapter 1 all the way up to Chapter 6.

15

Rocket Launcher

High Powered Explosive Launcher With Great Damage

The Rocket Launcher is one of the most iconic weapons in Fortnite history and is arguably one of the strongest. Though it has been absent from the loot pool for quite some time now, many players who were lucky enough to grab this weapon during Chapters 1 and 2 witnessed just how strong it was. As expected, the Rocket Launcher fired explosive rockets, providing immense splash damage on impact.

With a terrifying maximum damage output of 130, the Rocket Launcher was the bulldozer of all build fights, capable of decimating player structures and proving effective when used from above. The ability to ride on the weapon’s rockets also provided an excellent way of pushing toward enemy players from a distance, granted players did need to be a part of a squad to pull it off. Though immensely powerful, the Rocket Launcher was balanced rather nicely with its slow projectile and reload speed.

14

Twin Mag SMG

High DPS SMG With Sleight Of Hand Reload Speeds

From an OG weapon to a more recent addition, next up is the Twin Mag SMG, a gun that made its debut in Chapter 4: Season 1. While Submachine Guns aren’t generally the most preferred weapon class—often outshined by both Shotguns and Assault Rifles—the Twin Mag SMG was a top-tier weapon upon its release and remains a solid addition to Fortnite Reload.

The main draw of the Twin Mag SMG is its excellent DPS, thanks to its blistering fire rate. Pair this with the weapon’s tight hip-fire spread, and players have an excellent tool for spraying down opponents or low-health builds. Its most unique benefit, however, is its dual magazine system, which features a remarkably fast reload speed for the first magazine. This provides minimal downtime in intense combat situations, making it a standout choice.

13

Rapid Fire SMG

Strong SMG Boasting A High Fire Rate

Fortnite has featured its fair share of Submachine Guns throughout the years. Though the original Submachine Gun and the Tactical SMG were great weapons for the seasons they were featured in, the Rapid Fire SMG blows most other renditions out of the water. This nifty weapon made its debut in Chapter 2 Season 2 and was difficult to beat at close range thanks to its high DPS.

The Rapid Fire SMG was an absolute monster during its first appearance, shredding through opponents’ health with its high fire rate. But that’s not all, as this weapon was also exceptional at destroying enemy structures, with no amount of tips and tricks capable of keeping it at bay. Of course, to balance it out, the weapon did come with some major caveats, including its poor range and high recoil. Despite these flaws, however, the Rapid Fire SMG is among the top weapons in Fortnite’s history.

12

Striker Burst Assault Rifle

Superb Weapon For Medium & Long Range Gunfights

Chapter 3 was an interesting turning point for the Fortnite loot pool, as many of the weapons began to feature a built-in scope that shifted the player into a first-person perspective when aiming down sights. This feature was groundbreaking at the time and paved the way for one of Fortnite’s best medium-to-long-range weapons: the Striker Burst Assault Rifle.

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As the name suggests, the Striker Burst Assault Rifle fired in two-round bursts and boasted excellent damage range with minimal recoil. Both attributes made the weapon superb for long-range, especially considering that it could be used with pinpoint accuracy when scoped in. Though players needed to land both shots to maximize their damage, the fairly sizable magazine size left some room for error, making it favorable for both pros and casuals alike.

11

Red-Eye Assault Rifle

Excellent Long Range Assault Rifle

Next up is the Red-Eye Assault Rifle, a weapon that arrived with the first season of Chapter 4. This full-auto Assault Rifle boasted a fairly slow fire rate, and while its damage is comparable to other fast-firing Assault Rifles, the Red-Eye had accuracy on its side, sporting very minimal bloom. The weapon also came with a built-in red dot sight, bringing players into the first-person perspective when aiming down sights.

All these attributes make the Red-Eye Assault Rifle an ideal weapon for medium to long-range combat, especially when factoring in the fact that the weapon was a hitscan gun, meaning players did not need to lead their shots from afar. All in all, the Red-Eye Assault Rifle proved effective for opening a long-range gunfight, along with being remarkably useful for keeping the pressure on opponents.

10

Maven Auto Shotgun

Full Auto Shotgun With Excellent DPS

Next up is the Maven Auto Shotgun, yet another weapon featured in Chapter 4. This fully automatic Shotgun was the go-to for many players over other options like the Thunder Shotgun during its season debut, mainly thanks to the fact that players could rack up a decent amount of damage without having to rely too much on accuracy—courtesy of the weapon’s faster fire rate. The weapon also retained solid damage at medium range, making it rather versatile.

Perks aside, eagle-eyed players may notice that the Maven Auto Shotgun generally performs quite similarly to the Tactical Shotgun, and not just in the way it functions. In fact, its stats are almost identical to the v20.30 Tactical Shotgun, aside from its slightly slower fire rate, faster reload speeds, and smaller magazine size. All in all, if players wanted a great Shotgun with excellent firepower, the Maven Auto Shotgun was a solid choice for quite a few seasons following its Chapter 4 debut.

9

Thunder Burst SMG

High Damage Burst SMG With Great Range Potential

Serving as one of the more recent additions to the loot pool, there is the Thunder Burst SMG, a weapon that made its first debut in Chapter 5. This weapon functions eerily similar to the Burst Assault Rifle from previous seasons, delivering a three-round burst with a pull of the trigger. Of course, the potential range of the Thunder Burst SMG does not necessarily hold a candle to many Assault Rifles in the game, but it is still impressive for an SMG and cements its place as one of the best weapons in Fortnite.

The Thunder Burst SMG is often regarded as one of the best weapons for Chapter 5 specifically for a multitude of reasons. The first is its potential damage, which can reach upwards of 70 for a Common variant if all shots from a single burst hit their mark. As mentioned before, the range of this SMG is also pretty impressive, sporting little damage falloff along with almost zero bloom when equipped with the right weapon mods. The Thunder Burst SMG is also capable of bleeding through wooden structures due to its burst-fire nature, meaning players can pressure opponents who are constantly replacing a wall, making it a superb weapon for box fights.

8

Combat Shotgun

Fast-Firing Shotgun With Great Range Potential

While the Combat Shotgun is one of the weapons returning for Chapter 5 Season 4, its original rendition from Chapter 1 Season 9 is arguably the strongest variant to date. The Combat Shotgun served as the replacement for the Pump Shotgun in Season 9, and though it was weaker in terms of damage per shot, the Combat Shotgun surpassed the Pump in raw DPS. It was a true force to be reckoned with back in Season 9, sporting a super-fast fire rate and a tight pellet spread that made it optimal for medium-range engagements.

But that’s not all, as the Combat Shotgun’s effective damage range was also quite high when it was first added, dealing damage up to the 60-meter mark, but proving especially effective from the 15 to 20-meter range – so much so that it received a much-needed nerf to its damage range along with its fire rate. Despite this, the Combat Shotgun was the most prevalent close-range weapon on the battlefield, proving to be one of the best weapons for the whole of Chapter 1.

7

Heavy Sniper Rifle

High Powered Sniper Rifle With High Damage Per Shot

The Heavy Sniper is one of the rare instances of a gun in Fortnite that’s brought back fairly regularly and hardly ever altered or changed. In fact, it was barely altered at all following its initial debut in Chapter 1 Season 5, besides changes to structural damage and headshot damage. With the highest damage to the body of any Sniper, this weapon was an absolute powerhouse in the long-range meta for quite some time, quickly dispatching opponents from afar.

While powerful from a distance, the Heavy Sniper also proved useful in other ways. The booming sound of a Heavy Sniper was a terror to players diving into the seasons it was added for and this includes close range. This is thanks to its ability to take out players’ builds with a single shot, which meant that this gun was a significant problem even during build fights. All these factors make the Heavy Sniper one of the most formidable weapons in Fortnite history, one which is only kept at bay due to a very slow reload time.

6

Reaper Sniper Rifle

Long Range Weapon With The Ability To One-Shot Kill

Though Sniper Rifles have been featured multiple times in Fortnite’s various seasons, the Reaper Sniper Rifle is among the best. The Reaper Sniper Rifle made its initial debut in Chapter 5 Season 1 and was the top choice for players looking to take out opponents at long range. When compared to the original Bolt-Action Sniper Rifle, the stats are almost one-to-one, especially in terms of damage-per-shot. However, the biggest edge the Reaper Sniper Rifle has over previous renditions is its higher magazine ammo capacity.

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The Reaper Sniper Rifle comes with three rounds by default, which is great for minimizing the downtime between each shot, especially when considering the fire rate of this weapon isn’t too slow compared to the original. The Reaper Sniper Rifle also retains the ability to eliminate an opponent with a single headshot, making it ideal for gaining quick kills. Pair these attributes with the fact that the Reaper Sniper Rifle also supports weapon mods via the Mod Bench, and players will find that the Reaper Sniper Rifle is one of the most versatile long-range weapons to have made it into Fortnite Battle Royale.

5

Tactical Shotgun

Solid Semi-Automatic Shotgun With Excellent Stopping Power

Next is a fan favorite: the Tactical Shotgun, a weapon that remained a staple of Fortnite throughout most of Chapter 1. The Tactical Shotgun is a weapon that all Fortnite players will recognize, thanks to its iconic design and versatility on the battlefield. While it didn’t boast the highest damage output compared to other Shotguns in the same loot pool, it had one major advantage: its fire rate.

The Tactical Shotgun is a semi-automatic weapon equipped with eight shells, allowing players to unleash rapid back-to-back shots to decimate opponents. This made it highly effective for close-range engagements, eliminating the need to rely on an additional spray weapon to finish the job. These qualities cement the Tactical Shotgun as a strong contender for one of the best weapons in Fortnite’s history.

4

Gatekeeper Shotgun

High Damage Shotgun With A Fast Fire Rate

Next up is the Gatekeeper, a notoriously powerful Shotgun that dominated throughout Chapter 5. This Shotgun boasts excellent damage compared to many other Shotguns introduced in the same chapter, along with a solid fire rate that allows players to rack up damage quickly. These attributes alone made it a reliable weapon for close-range engagements, but there’s more to its appeal.

The Gatekeeper Shotgun also features a fairly wide pellet spread, forming a triangle pattern, which makes it easier to land shots on opponents. However, the weapon’s damage drops off significantly at medium range, and its small magazine size can be limiting. Fortunately, with the addition of an extended magazine attachment from the Mod Bench, the Gatekeeper cements itself as one of the best Shotguns in all of Fortnite.

3

Drum Gun

Great Spray Weapon With A High Fire Rate & Large Magazine

While the Drum Gun made a more recent appearance in Chapter 5 Season 2, the Legacy variant that debuted towards the end of Chapter 1 Season 4 is arguably the best outside of Midas’ Drum Gun—one of the best Mythics in Fortnite. This is due to a few factors. Firstly, the low rarity of the Drum Gun when it was first released made it remarkably common, marking itself as one of the most prevalent weapons on the battlefield at the time. On top of that, the original Drum Gun also sported quite a high DPS in comparison to its later variants and was fully capable of breaking player builds relatively easily.

The original Drum Gun was a true force to be reckoned with, capable of dealing immense damage to players at close range at the cost of relatively poor accuracy from afar. Its most prevalent use among the Fortnite player base was as a supporting spray weapon, proving rather devastating when paired with a Shotgun thanks to its high fire rate and large magazine. Though the Drum Gun eventually received a string of nerfs throughout the later seasons, it still cemented itself as a credible close-range weapon, proving to be one of the best weapons in Fortnite history.

2

Pump Shotgun

Superb High Damage Weapon For Close Quarters Combat

The Pump Shotgun is among one of Fortnite’s original roster of weapons, marking its very first debut for the Pre-Season of Chapter 1. The weapon is iconic, heralded as one of the most powerful weapons in the game during the earliest seasons. Though its range was fairly limited, the Pump Shotgun could dish out immense damage at close range, and even provided the potential for a one-shot headshot kill. Of course, players had to hit most of their pellets in order to achieve this feat, calling for them to be both accurate and close to their opponents.

The Pump Shotgun has gone through various updates since its initial debut, such as tweaks to its damage along with nerfs to its potential range. However, the biggest nerf has to be the Shotgun delay introduced in Season 5, which removed the ability to Double Pump, which made the Pump Shotgun one of the most OP weapons for some time. Despite this nerf, the Pump Shotgun still remained a solid weapon to use for close-range gunfights and proved extremely effective when paired with a spray weapon like the SMG or the Assault Rifle.

1

Assault Rifle

An Original Weapon That Proved To Be Versatile

Of course, this list would not be complete without the original Assault Rifle from Chapter 1 of Fortnite, an iconic weapon that served as many players’ go-to weapon besides the original Pump Shotgun. This weapon was slow-firing and versatile, capable of dealing consistent damage to players from afar without the need for players to lead their shots, as during this time all weapons aside from Sniper Rifles were hitscan.

Players could dominate their matches with an Epic or Legendary Assault Rifle during Chapter 1. The weapon was powerful, with the original version dealing an average of 30 damage for lower rarities and upwards of 35 damage for Epic and Legendary rarities. But that’s not all, as players lucky enough to land a headshot with the Legendary variant could dish out a whopping 98 damage per shot, leading to quick eliminations with multiple shots chained together. All these factors make the Assault Rifle one of the best weapons in Fortnite history, one which players can now use in Fortnite OG.

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Released

July 25, 2017

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