Role-playing games of both the table-top and video game variety share a common element, and that's a vast choice of weaponry. The fancy sets and impressive two-handed blades that you see on the promotional artwork aren't exactly what you start with at level one, however. That "p" in RPG could also stand for progression, because that's the real point of this game, and that means you and your character start at the bottom.
In Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous you can start a new character or use a premade, but either way, you still start at level one. It's true there's not a lot of flashy gear to choose from at this point in the game, but that doesn't mean you still can't equip the best weapon possible. The following are both named and general items that you'll find before level 5 either as drops, from loot, or available from vendors. They range in type from simple, martial, or exotic and vary in quality and style, so you can still find almost anything you want even if it's early in the game.
Updated on November 2, 2021, by Kristy Ambrose: After a few updates and patches have been applied to the game since its release, and that means we can add a few updates to our list of the best weapons in Pathfinder: WoTR. For players that enjoy more and better customization options, more weapons are always good news. Why else play RPGs if not for the shiny rewards and pile of golden loot? Throw in a few sick weapons and Pathfinder: WoTR gets even more fun with a bigger choice for sharp objects and lethal projectiles.
Two-Handed Weapons
- Not to be confused with dual-wielding, which means a one-handed weapon in each hand. Examples of two-handed weapons are greatswords, staves, tridents, and glaives.
- This is a weapon skill often reserved for martial classes like Fighters, Paladins, and Barbarians.
Longspear
No bonuses, no name, no special abilities or buffs, just the most basic form of the weapon. It's simple but it's great to start with especially if you have a character who likes staves as much as weapons like axes or glaives. Even the basic stats are impressive, giving you a possible 10-17 hit points and as many as 20 points if you succeed on a critical hit. It's not amazing but it's one of the Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous best weapons.
Bug Crusher
The Bug Crusher is a bardiche, which is a two-handed weapon resembling a glaive or halberd. It has the basic stats for a bardiche, which are pretty nasty anyway with 1d10 slashing damage and a healthy six-foot range, but it also has the special ability for landing extra damage if a target they've successfully hit fails a Fortitude saving throw. One of the best things about Bug Crusher is that it's easily found at the Crusader Camp as early as Chapter 2 and can be purchased from the quartermaster there, Wilcer Garms.
Marching Terror
This item can be acquired in the Shield Maze, one of the first dungeon-like encounters your party will fight their way through. It's one of the few unique weapons that you can acquire this early, and the +1 bonus and the 10 to 19 hit point damage are just the beginning.
When you strike an enemy for the first time with the Marching Terror, the target receives up to six points of negative damage, and all other enemies in a 15 feet radius must pass a Will saving throw or become frightened for one turn. That's handy for both a tank or DPS character.
Cold Iron Trident
The "cold iron" part of the name just describes the quality of the weapon. That makes it slightly better than the most basic weapons available early in the game, plus it has the extra reach and piercing damage abilities that you would expect of any trident. Martial proficiency is required to wield the Cold Iron Trident and it's usually limited to martial classes that have a background as gladiators or worshippers of the elemental diety, Gozreh.
Ranged Weapons
- Unless you rolled a martial class when you started Pathfinder: WotR you'll find your early party has a wide variety of ranged-weapon users. If you like ranged weapons, it's good to know the best ones for your beginning party.
- Ember the Witch has a ranged weapon proficiency, she's just not very effective. This is one of the best weapons for her because she's a caster with a penalty to her combat ability.
Light Crossbow
A crossbow is a nice weapon anyway, and the simple light crossbow that you come across in your first level or two of Pathfinder is ideal. It's faster than a normal bow and arrow and lighter than a medium, heavy, or composite crossbow. It's classified as a simple weapon, or virtually any character can use it.
The 50-foot range makes it ideal for a character with a low AC who would prefer to keep their distance, like a Monk. It's one of Pathfinder: WoTR's best weapons for early in the game and a variety of companions can use it.
Detainer
Detainer is a heavy crossbow that would be more aptly named as something like Repeller or Knockback. When a shot from this crossbow hits an enemy, it has the distinctive ability to slow them for one round and throw them back as much as 15 feet should they fail a Fortitude saving throw.
It can be purchased in Defender's Heart, so it's easy to find early in the game, but the catch is the price tag, a whopping 16 900 gold. In later chapters, this amount for an item is a possibility, but early in the game, it's often out of reach.
Wicked Longbow
A composite longbow on its own is devasting in the hands of someone strong enough to use it, and the Wicked Longbow, which you can pick up in Market Square, has some additional features that make it unique.
It has a +2 hit, to begin with, and when you get a critical hit on an enemy, the target must pass Will saving throw or be cursed. The curse takes a -1 penalty to Will, a -2 penalty to Fortitude, and a -3 penalty to Reflex saving throws.
Poisonous Dart
One step above a regular dart, this weapon is unique to the companion Woljif, and since it's primarily a Rogue's weapon that makes sense. These darts have a +1 bonus and when they get a critical hit on an enemy, the target must make a successful Fortitude saving throw or be poisoned for the next three rounds.
A successful Fortitude saving throw can negate the damage or cure the poison. The poison normally deals 1d3 Constitution damage per round for 3 rounds provided it's not interrupted.
One-Handed Weapons
- One-handed weapons are over-represented in every game, and Pathfinder: WoTR shamelessly doubles down on this by adding even more obscure and exotic choices to the list.
- As it usually is with RPGs, you have to think outside the box when it comes to what your character can use, as a weapon or otherwise.
Kukri
This elegant weapon is perfect for any dual wielder, or in other words, a person who wants a dagger in one hand and another weapon or special item in the other. Provided that you can equip it, that is. The Kukri is both a Finesse and Martial Weapon and grants only a small amount of damage per turn, up to 8 points of damage, but the critical hit is brutal at about 20 points.
Oppressor
This bastard sword has a number of bonuses that make it one of the better weapons in the game. On top of the 1d10 slashing damage, the wielder of this sword gets a +6 to their Charisma ability score, which is really generous, plus a handy +2 luck bonus on Will saving throws.
As nice as Oppressor is, players will probably come across later in the game or maybe never if they don't talk to an NPC named Jernaugh in Defender's Heart in Chapter One. This weapon is found in Chilly Creek, which doesn't appear on the map unless the protagonist has a conversation about it with Jernaugh first. That makes it not only one of the best weapons in Pathfinder: WoTR but also a tough one to acquire.
Shiny Dagger
Casters who want to do some melee damage and carry an offhand could do a lot worse than the simple but unique Shiny Dagger when they come across it in the Gray Garrison. It's also ideal for Rogues or Fighters. Every time this dagger lands a critical hit, it blinds the target for a single round, which is a handy ability when you're still in the learning stages. For maulti-class characters or those that use cantrips, it's one of Pathfinder: WoTR's best weapons.
Everburning Torch
It seems strange to think of this utilitarian item as a one-handed weapon, but the Everburning Torch is one of the handiest items you can pick up and it's one of the first weapons the character gets for a reason. Right from the start of this game's RPG narrative, you'll be traveling underground, in the dead of night, and through dark parts of the city that have been taken over by demonic forces. They do both fire and bludgeoning damage and are of a Simple quality so any character can use them. Simple and even considered trash by some players, but one of the best weapons in Pathfinder: WoTR.
Finnean The Talking Weapon
You first come across Finnean the Talking Weapon during the "Stolen Moon" quest, which is one of the earliest adventures in the game provided Woljif is in the party. Although this is filed under one-handed weapons, Finnean can change into any weapon you want. You can also talk to him and learn more about Finnean the Talking Weapon's mysterious backstory, which it turns out is deeply connected to a dark secret that's pivotal to the main plot.