An important part of getting those W’s is understanding what all of the weapons in Fortnite do, as well as how and when to best use them. If you’re wondering what the damage output of your favorite weapon is, or if you ever asked just how much better is the Purple Tac from the Green one, you’ve come to the right place.

Experiment with every weapon type, even if you favor some over the others. You never know when you’ll be in a tight situation early game, and you don’t want to be stuck with a weapon you’ve never used before. What’s more, there really aren’t “superior” weapons in this game. Due to the way in which the weapon stats and mechanics work, just about every weapon class in the game has the potential to carry you through a match, as long as you can hit your shots.

Shotguns

• Optimal for close range.
• Tighten spread by aiming down sights when possible.
• Pump has longer range than Tactical.
• Heavy has longest range and least damage fall-off.

Pistols

• Close to Medium Range.
• Extremely high DPS if you can land headshots.
• Silenced pistols strong enough to substitute for an AR, but have slightly less range.

Magnums

• Close to Medium Range.
• Not accurate at longer ranges.
• Good for threatening targets at medium range before bringing out AR.

Sub-Machine Guns (SMGs)

• Optimal at Close Range.
• Eats ammo, have to monitor your clip.
• Good clean-up weapon for Pump Shotguns.

Miniguns

• Optimal for destroying structures, pressuring bases.
• No reload. Fires as long as you have Light Ammo.
• Long initial wind-up time. Ready the gun behind cover before firing.
• Not accurate, especially at long ranges. No ADS.

Assault Rifles

• Effective at most ranges, optimal at Medium Range.
• Burst less effective at longer ranges and for assaulting bases. Great Close to medium range, higher crit.
• Most “All-purpose” weapon in the game.
• Best to “tap fire” rather than use full auto for increased accuracy.

Sniper Rifles

• Effective at long range.
• Has bullet drop at longer ranges. Also is an actual projectile, so target movement speed needs to be taken into account.
• Bolt-action kills no matter what with a headshot.
• Best to snipe from a position of cover. Don’t let yourself become too exposed while aiming with scopes.

Hunting Rifles

• Effective at medium range.
• Has extreme bullet drop at longer ranges.
• Does not necessarily replace a sniper rifle. Acts more like an accurate, medium range magnum.

Crossbows

• Effective at medium to long range.
• Has bullet drop. Projectile travels much slower than sniper rounds.
• Has infinite ammo.
• Cannot destroy structures.
• Almost completely silent when firing, but if target is listening, the thwok of missed arrows is noticeable.

Grenade Launchers

• Fires grenades in an arc up to medium range.
• Effective at quickly destroying bases.
• Not ideal for one on one combat.

Rocket Launchers

• Effective at close to medium range.
• Great for assaulting structures in tandem with an AR.
• Can be used in close quarter combat, but be wary of splash damage to yourself.
• Due to slow rocket travel time, aim for where target is going, not where they are currently.