Borderlands 4’s DLC Arsenal Has 10 Guns for Bosses, Mobs and Build Synergy
Some weapons favor burst damage against bosses, while others spread elemental effects or bounce shots across groups.
Borderlands 4‘s DLC weapons do their best work in different ways. Some reward accurate shots with boss-melting bursts, while others multiply projectiles, spread elemental effects or turn gunfire into a setup for melee damage. Matching each weapon to the right build matters as much as its raw damage.
The choices also come from different kinds of post-launch content. Bounty Pack 5 separates its Amara mission from Vault Card 5, so its weapons span more than one reward track. Other picks arrived through Story Packs or free content updates.
Boss damage rewards accuracy and timing
Scoot N’ Shoot is a legendary pistol for players who can keep their shots on target. Its Rollin’ Deep effect creates spectral hands that shoot at the enemies the wielder hits. Those hands deal heavy damage, but reloading resets them, so the pistol rewards sustained accuracy instead of constant weapon swapping. Its focused damage makes it better suited to bosses than groups of ordinary enemies.
Astonisher takes a very different approach. This Pearlescent shotgun drops from Lt. Harmony in the FL4K and the Last Resort content, so players must complete that DLC before they can farm for it. Pure Energy empties the magazine when the weapon fires, trading ammunition efficiency for a powerful blast. A Freeloader enhancement can give it a chance to reload the magazine immediately, helping keep the shotgun firing, though its ammo consumption remains a real drawback.
Wind Skimmer is another boss-focused choice, particularly for a sniper build. It fires four high-powered shots at once, and Higher Ground makes those shots cost one less ammo while the wielder is airborne. The combination is built around a heavy burst rather than sustained fire, with the weapon’s damage depending on how well the character’s build supports sniper rifles.
Pragmate turns gunfire into a melee setup. Each hit adds a Praxis stack, and every stack increases the next instance of melee damage by 25 percent. The shotgun fires five pellets at once, so landing the full spread builds stacks quickly. That makes it a sharper fit for melee-focused characters than for clearing crowds with gunfire alone.
Projectile effects help clear groups
Triplicate is an assault rifle whose Tripled effect sends explosive shots out from an enemy hit by its bullets. That makes it a strong option against clustered targets, where the extra explosions can reach nearby foes. The splash damage can also catch the wielder at close range, so keeping some distance is important.
Lockjaw brings a more controlled version of chain damage. Its Round the Horn effect bounces projectiles to as many as four nearby enemies, and a Jakobs part can add more bounces when critical hits land. The rifle works across different builds, but its ricochets are most useful when the wielder can keep scoring critical hits.
The Herald is a Pearlescent Torgue pistol that fires a flurry of bullets which explode on impact. It echoes the Unkempt Harold from Borderlands 2, but players do not need to farm the raid boss tied to its free content update. The Herald can drop elsewhere, making it an appealing option for explosive damage without a specific boss-farming requirement.
Flash Cyclone, a Maliwan SMG from Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned, builds its damage through extra projectiles. Flash Freeze gives the weapon a chance to explode on a hit and spawn more projectiles, giving its shots the potential to hit much harder than their initial damage suggests.
Elemental and melee builds get their own tools
Decompiler is a Maliwan shotgun from the FL4K and the Last Resort content. Its Tinkerer effect fires a burst of projectiles that cycle through elements, giving it a useful role in builds that rely on status effects. That flexibility also suits Loveless, whose kit uses Corrosive and Radiation damage alongside Status Effects.
Tempered Essence comes from Vault Card 5 and can drop in any element. Its Aura effect can launch a fist that deals melee and grenade damage, giving the weapon a different purpose from a conventional bullet-focused option. The combination makes it a natural fit for builds that already invest in melee damage.
There is no single winner for every Vault Hunter here. Wind Skimmer and Scoot N’ Shoot favor concentrated boss damage, while Triplicate and Lockjaw spread their effects across a crowd. Which of these weapons best fits your build? For more on how Borderlands 4‘s story packs and Vault Cards add new gear, follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.
Borderlands 4
Developed by Gearbox Software
See if you have what it takes to go down in history as a legendary Vault Hunter as you search for secret alien treasure, blasting everything in sight.
- Genre Shooter, Role-playing (RPG), Adventure
- Platforms Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 5
- Perspective First person
- Modes Single player, Multiplayer, Co-operative
- Release September 11, 2025
- Publisher 2K
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Age Rating
