New World weapon tier list – Best weapons for PVE in New World

After picking your character class in any MMO game, the next important choice usually comes down to your gear choices. New World is no different, and it’s of vital importance to pick the best possible weapons for the job. Of course, your own playstyle factors in as well, as all players will always have a personal preference. In New World’s PVE content, some weapons perform better than others and that develops the game’s weapon meta. In this guide, you can read how we’ve ranked the best PVE weapons in New World according to a tier list format. 

Related: New World weapon tier list – Best weapons for PVP in New World

The best weapons in New World for PVE

S Tier

• Rapier: Lightning-quick one-handed weapon dishing thrusting and slashing damage. The lack of a shield is offset by good movement skills.
• Life Staff: The quintessential healing and support weapon, it’s indispensable in any PVE environment, especially in group content.
• Bow: The ubiquitous bow relies on applying a lot of damage in a short time. The best option for mobility and ranged combat.
• Fire Staff: The best AoE weapon in New World, and for that reason one of the best PVE weapons to bring along.

A Tier

• Sword & Shield: What they lack in outright damage, they make up in tankiness. And it’s always a good idea to have a tank in PVE.
• Spear: A versatile weapon that can be used in both short- and long-range combat due to its reach. This essentially allows a spear wielder to perform two roles, as needed.

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B Tier

• Warhammer: The highest-damage, yet slowest melee weapon in the game. They make for decent CC and single-target damage.
• Void Gauntlets: Best used for debuffing, their abilities are outshined by most other weapons, but still not the worst option to have in a group.
• Musket: It has the highest ranged damage in the game, but that’s offset by long reload times. This can hurt in PVE when there are more mobs coming your way.
• Blunderbuss: With a spread of damage and limited range, it can cover more mobs at once, but requires constant reloading. That’s why it’s outshined by the Fire Staff.

C Tier

• Great Axe: On paper, the cleaving and self-heal aspects should be great for PVE, but in practice, the Great Axe is not nearly strong enough to bring when the Spear is better.
• Ice Gauntlet: With low damage, these gauntlets are made for CC application. However, their throughput doesn’t come close to enough for PVE content.
• Hatchet: It has decent speed and damage output, but all other one-handed options are simply much better than the humble Hatchet.