Snipers aren't so crazy this time around in Borderlands 3. In previous games, Snipers were plentiful and packed a real punch. Now, in this third entry, they've kind of fallen behind. Shotguns seem to be the bread and butter of BL3, but that's just from what we've seen. In any case, there are still a decent amount of Snipers in the game, and a couple of them are truly powerful. Others, on the other hand, are only good in specific situations or are outclassed in almost every other category. So, to help players figure out which sleuthy sniper to farm for, we're here to break down the best. Well, the best other than the Lyuda that is.
10 Best: The Lyuda
And here it is! The Lyuda, the undisputed best sniper in the game. Honestly with FL4K Crit builds getting nerfed every patch, there's not much reason to use this over say The Unforgiven. But, the one that towers above all is the Lyuda. This sniper is absolutely essential for Mayhem 3 players, as the modifiers and health sponge enemies make most other weapons feel like pea shooters. It shoots 3 projectiles that meet in the middle, and its rapid fire rate makes it great at any range. Basically, even after all the nerfs, the Lyuda is still King.
9 Worst: The Firestorm
In short, the Firestorm should've been much better than it is. But, unfortunately, Maliwan made it, and that's no good. This flame-based sniper is unique in that after hitting anything at all, it spawns 3 little flame balls that float briefly before rocketing back down for some splash damage. But, enemies move constantly in Borderlands, and these flame balls don't hone in at all. So most of the time a player will shoot an enemy with this, then watch as the Fireballs hit nothing while said bandit walks away. It might be decent against larger bosses like the Rampager or Grave Warden, but there are better options, so why even bother?
8 Best: The Krakatoa
But, shockingly enough, the next great entry on this list is also a Maliwan Sniper. So it seems like the manufacturer does have a few good eggs in its basket since it's a basket hand-made from gold upon Maliwan's pleasure ship the Zenara. Spongebob's Captain Magma choice this weapon himself, and it's like the better version of Firestorm. The only thing stronger than fire is magma, right? It's pretty similar to the Firestorm except instead of little balls of flame, the Krakatoa literally spawns a miniature volcano that erupts for a period of time at the shot location. With much better damage, splash coverage, and a gimmick that's twice as cool, the Krakatoa is obviously the Firestorm for true intellectuals.
7 Worst: Malak's Bane
This might just be another one of those weapons that we just didn't have the right builds for, or didn't use correctly, but Malak's Bane just seemed weak? Basically, it has guaranteed ricochet, every shot will bounce twice no matter what, but that's not all too amazing on a single-shot sniper. Though if we were looking for more projectiles, then its under-barrel Shotgun should've made us happy. Sadly, the Shotgun is only decent in our opinion. And, it obviously won't pull us away from the God-like Flakker, or even the Redline in terms of pure fun or damage.
6 Best: The Monocle (Mostly On FL4K)
What's up fellow gamers? This next weapon is only for the most elite and truly hardcore pro gamers! So without further ado, let's jump right into it! Alright enough of that bit, seriously though, this next sniper really is only useful when used by people with stellar aim. Basically, the monocle has terrible base damage, but an insane buff to critical power. Obviously from that description, this gun is crazy good on people running Fade Away FL4K. That's because the ricochet will crit as well, which means these two hits can deal up to 2500% crit damage in the right circumstances! That's high enough to one-shot the most elite enemies on Mayhem 3!
5 Worst: The ASMD
And here we have a sniper that expects too much out of its user. The ASMD is a weapon that harkens back to the old days of arena combat like Unreal Tournament. Basically, when hip-fired, this Maliwan toy will shoot a large shock-based orb, similar to the way The Lob Shotgun does. And, while zoomed in, it'll fire a normal sniper shot. But, its gimmick comes into play once the player shoots said orb with while aiming-down-sights. The orb will explode and do tons of shock damage to all the enemies around it! But what this actually equates to is something similar to any shock grenade or splash-damage weapon. Its a sniper with a gimmick that isn't powerful enough. Especially since its base damage is so mediocre in comparison to other Snipers.
4 Best: The Headsplosion
The Headsplosion can't decide what manufacturer it should represent. It ricochets when critting, so it's like a Jakobs. But, it also shoots explosive rounds, which is something that Torque weapons primarily do. Seems to us Gearbox flipped a coin and Jakobs won instead of our main man Torque. At the end of the day, the Headsplosion is basic yet great. Instead of the standard Jakobs 1-bullet Ricochet, it does 3, which is awesome. That in combination with its explosive rounds makes it one of the best snipers for crowd control and tight spaces. Sure it's a bit lame, but who doesn't love a Tenacious D reference?
3 Worst: The Crossbow
It seems like the age of bows as crazy strong weapons in video games has finally passed. We're sure everyone remembers the year or two in recent history when every game that came out had a bow as the main weapon? Tomb Raider, Crisis 3, The Last of Us, and many more. Well, the one in Borderlands 3 sucks. And its a bit of a shame since its so unqiue. Basically, this gun has a magazine size of one, shoots in an arc, and does high damage. But, its Hyperion, so crits mean nothing, there's no alternative fire, and it doesn't explode. Maybe if it was made by one of the other big gun manufacturers, it would be on the better side of this list?
2 Best: The Storm
We simply can't believe that Gearbox chose to reference Winnie The Pooh in this gun rather than the classic Storm line from X-Men. But hey, at least the gun is good! Remember how the Firestorm's orbs weren't really worth it? The Storm's orbs are. Instead of doing splash damage once they land, these orbs do shock damage to all enemies around them, similar to a Hex Grenade. Though the range is rather small, this can proc multiple times if the sniper shot hits multiple targets. And, being able to passively tear down shields is always a plus. Basically, the Storm is what the Firestorm could've been, while the Krakatoa is what the Firestorm should've been. It's complicated.
1 Worst: The Woodblocker
And finally we're cleaning things up by throwing shade at this tree-hugging weapon. This neat looking Sniper has a great weapon skin, but is boring in every single other way. Again, it's Hyperion, so it has no extra effects, just a wimpy front-facing shield. And, like some other weapons on here, its red-text gimmick should've been innate to the weapon and doesn't make it feel Legendary. In short, the Woodblocker shoots multiple bullets per burst. This is great for a sniper considering good aim can mean multiple crits in a row. The Woodblocker feels like a Legendary from the first game, where they were just figuring things out and starting to experiment, while the other weapons on this list tend to be more uniquely designed for Borderlands 3.