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What’s the best weapon in Doom The Dark Ages? Well, to some extent that depends on the upgrades you put into your guns across the course of the game, but the Super Shotgun remains as devastating now as it has in previous entries. Of course, that’s not the end of the conversation, as there are now other types of arms in Doom The Dark Ages to be considered, like the best melee weapon and more besides.
To help you understand the most powerful guns and abilities across the game, and what you need to do to earn them, here’s how to get the best weapons in Doom The Dark Ages and what makes them so powerful, including the best melee weapons and best shield rune ability.
It goes without saying that there's one weapon that's technically more powerful than anything listed below: the Ballistic Force Crossbow, or BFC. It fires bolts that explode in a massive radius and kill everything they touch, but considering it can only hold three shots and ammo is incredibly rare (to the point where many levels don't even have it) this is just a special move that doesn't really serve the same function as a standard weapon, much in the same way that the BFG did in previous games.
Best Doom The Dark Ages weapon
The best weapon in Doom The Dark Ages is the Super Shotgun, as mentioned previously. The explanation as to why is fairly simple – the Super Shotgun does massive damage unrivalled by all Doom The Dark Ages weapons, and considering that the game is often motivating you to get into melee range, the Shotgun is perfect for that. We also found that while it chews through ammo fairly rapidly, the game is liberal enough with ammo that you never actually run out.
To get the Super Shotgun, simply play the campaign until you reach Chapter 5: The Holy City of Aratum. Near the end of this level, after you’ve had the chance to find all the Doom The Dark Ages secret layovers, you’ll be presented with the Shotgun accordingly and will have it from that point on
Best melee weapon
Interested in all things Slayer? Check out all the Doom The Dark Ages setting and lore details here (spoiler-free), or find out how to crack the Doom The Dark Ages fire door of Hebeth!
Doom The Dark Ages has three melee weapons, but the best of these is Dreadmace, the last to be unlocked. It is a massively powerful melee weapon that does far more damage than the other two, but is offset by having only a single charge that slowly reloads. It also drops ammo when you hit enemies with it, but an upgrade that gives you a free use of it when you parry an attack means you can use it pretty frequently, and it will kill most enemies in a single strike. Ultimately, if you’re going to be in the danger zone of opponents, you’ll want the highest probability of ending the fight there and then before they can hurt you - that's one of the most important Doom The Dark Ages tips.
To get the Dreadmace, you need to progress quite far into the game, to Chapter 15: City of Ry’uul. The mace is another mandatory pick up that’s found fairly early in the mission, though you can go back and replay other missions with it.
Best Shield Rune
The best shield rune (or shield ability) in Doom The Dark Ages is Auto Turret. All four shield rune abilities are just variations on “do ranged damage in retaliation when you parry an attack”, and with that being the case it’s the Auto Turret that reliably does the most damage. Not only that, it can be controlled to target specific foes, as it fires in front of you rather than automatically going after the enemy you parried the attack of. That means that once triggered, you can sweep it through a crowd to devastate the horde, or focus fire on a single enemy to shred them.
To get the Auto Turret you need to reach Chapter 12: Sentinel Command Station. After obtaining the Yellow Key, you’ll have to trigger a font of water to continue and open a gate ahead of you, which gives you the Auto Turret ability.
Want more help with the war of Argent D'Nur? Check out how to get all the Doom The Dark Ages Spire of Nerathul Wraithstones, some of the toughest collectibles in the game, or check out how to crack the Doom The Dark Ages rotating water room puzzle in the Kar'Thul Marshes here!
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