The best Space Marine 2 weapons are versatile and well-suited for damaging both big and small enemies. But, since each class has access to only a small selection of weapons across the entire Space Marine 2 arsenal, you need to know which weapons work best for the playstyles and abilities of each class. Weapons can also change quite radically when you start upgrading them with Mastery Points and unlocking new versions. To help you build your loadouts and succeed in Operations or even PVP, I’ve laid out all the Space Marine 2 weapons into tier lists for each class and have explained to upgrade and master your weapons as you level up.
Best Space Marine 2 weapons
For all six classes, there are generally only one or two standout Space Marine 2 weapons, but with the right weapon version, perks, and class build, there’s a chance for almost any weapon to shine. Additionally, your weapons will feel more or less effective in certain situations depending on the Space Marine 2 difficulty you’re playing Operations on, but working your way up to getting Relic weapons and Mastery Points (covered further down) will help counter that too.
Remember that each of the Space Marine 2 classes gets three loadout slots, so you can create some unique weapon combinations to help you in various situations during Space Marine 2 Operations, and you can switch between them by using weapon pods found at certain points in missions. With all that in mind, here are the best weapons in Space Marine 2 for each class:
Space Marine 2 Tactical weapon tier list
Tactical space marines are stuck with the Bolt Pistol and Chainsword in their respective slots but have seven primary weapons to choose from, so there’s a lot of choice and you can enjoy great variety in your Tactical loadouts:
- S-tier: Bolt Rifle, Melta Rifle
- A-tier: Heavy Bolt Rifle, Plasma Incinerator
- B-tier: Auto Bolt Rifle
- C-tier: Stalker Bolt Rifle, Bolt Carbine
- Suggested loadouts:
- Heavy Bolt Rifle + Bolt Pistol + Chainsword: A solid Space Marine 2 weapon loadout that’s great for clearing out Minoris and Majoris-level enemies with sustained Heavy Bolt Rifle fire and fighting in melee.
- Melta Rifle + Bolt Pistol + Chainsword: For when you know you’re going to be facing a mixture of enemy types in tighter spaces, and you don’t have a Heavy in your squad, opt for the Melta Rifle.
Space Marine 2 Assault weapon tier list
The Assault class doesn’t get a primary weapon, so you only need to choose one secondary and melee Space Marine 2 weapon. For me, the Heavy Bolt Pistol is a no-brainer for all your loadouts, but you might want to swap your melee weapon based on which enemies you’re battling:
- S-tier: Heavy Bolt Pistol, Chainsword
- A-tier: Thunder Hammer
- B-tier: Bolt Pistol
- C-tier: Power Fist
- Suggested loadouts:
- Heavy Bolt Pistol + Chainsword: A perfect all-rounder Space Marine 2 weapon loadout for the Assault class that lets you fight almost any foe in aggressive melee combat. Alternatively, the hammer is great against Tyranids as you can squash hordes and batter Warriors, but it’s much harder to use against shielded Tzaangors and teleporting Rubrics.
Space Marine 2 Vanguard weapon tier list
The Vanguard class’s role as a highly mobile, big-enemy killer demands weapons that suit a run-and-gun playstyle. Luckily, the class has access to three primary weapons and two melee weapons to help you lean into this speciality, helping you kill Warriors, Rubric Marines, and more from far away or up close:
- S-tier: Instigator Bolt Carbine, Chainsword
- A-tier: Melta Rifle, Occulus Bolt Carbine
- B-tier: Combat Knife
- Suggested loadouts:
- Instigator Bolt Carbine + Bolt Pistol + Chainsword: A good generalist weapon loadout that covers longer ranges and uses the Chainsword for both horde and duelling melee combat.
- Occulus Bolt Carbine + Bolt Pistol + Combat Knife: With these Space Marine 2 weapons, you can spray and pray at hordes and zip around the battlefield to larger enemies with a Grapnel and Knife combo.
Space Marine 2 Bulwark weapon tier list
As mentioned in our Space Marine 2 tips, the Plasma Pistol is arguably the best secondary weapon, and the Bulwark is one of only two classes that can wield it. Otherwise, your main choice is which melee weapon to use and there are a few options depending on your preferences:
- S-tier: Plasma Pistol, Power Sword, Chainsword
- B-tier: Bolt Pistol
- C-tier: Power Fist
- Suggested loadouts:
- Plasma Pistol + Power Sword: A highly versatile set of Space Marine 2 weapons thanks to the Plasma Pistol’s charging ability and the Power Sword’s stance-switching, letting you attack any foes that harass you at the frontline. The Chainsword is also a great option if you want something a bit easier to use in the heat of battle.
Space Marine 2 Sniper weapon tier list
The Sniper is stuck using the Bolt Pistol and Combat Knife but has four specialized primary weapons that lock you into a stealthy playstyle. Essentially, you need to decide if you prefer patient sniping or getting in close and trying to make the most of everything in your loadout:
- S-tier: Las Fusil
- A-tier: Bolt Carbine
- B-tier: Stalker Bolt Rifle
- Suggested loadouts:
- Las Fusil + Bolt Pistol + Combat Knife: While it’s low ammunition can be an issue, the Las Fusil is the best sniper weapon in Space Marine 2, though you will have to rely on your knife, but mostly your teammates, when fighting up close.
- Bolt Carbine + Bolt Pistol + Combat Knife: This weapon loadout leans entirely on close-range stealth, letting you spray into hordes and emerge from camouflage to stab enemies in the back with your knife.
Space Marine 2 Heavy weapon tier list
The Heavy is a unique class in that it’s the only one that gets to wield heavy weapons in Space Marine 2. There are three to choose from, each providing very different forms of firepower, but that does mean you can have one in each loadout slot, so you won’t have to make any tough choices:
- S-tier: Plasma Pistol, Heavy Bolter
- A-tier: Multi-Melta
- B-tier: Bolt Pistol, Heavy Plasma Incinerator
- Suggested loadouts:
- Heavy Bolter + Plasma Pistol: The Heavy Bolter is probably the Heavy’s best generalist weapon, letting you lay down sustained fire on hordes and tougher enemies.
- Multi-Melta Carbine + Plasma Pistol: The Multi-Melta’s low ammo capacity can be a problem but it’s firepower is unmatched, and will really help with clearing clusters of chaff enemies or staggering larger foes.
How Space Marine 2 Weapon Mastery works
The Weapon Mastery system in Space Marine 2 is how you upgrade your weapons for harder Operations by getting Mastery Points that can be allocated to a weapon’s Perk Tree, improving the weapon with stat bonuses and extra abilities:
- Earning XP by completing an Operation grants XP to every version of a weapon you used in that Operation. By default, this is the Standard version of every weapon.
- When you earn enough XP for a weapon version, you “master” it and earn one Mastery Point specifically for that weapon type, though you can also spend one Space Marine 2 Armory Data to skip the XP requirement and get the Mastery Point straight away.
- You can allocate your weapon’s Mastery Points on its Perk Tree along one of two tracks, unlocking stat boosts and extra abilities that apply to the whole weapon type across all loadouts for all classes and not just the equipped weapon version in the specific loadout you’re looking at.
However, since Mastery Points are tied to mastering different versions of the same weapon, you also need to know about the four weapon rarity tiers. Like mastering a weapon version, you need to hit an XP requirement and must also spend one Armory Data to unlock the next rarity tier for that weapon type (Standard > Master-Crafted > Artificer > Relic). Once you’ve done that, you can buy any of the newly available weapon versions using Space Marine 2 Requisition Points and can start using them to earn Mastery Points as explained above – play Operations, earn XP!
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