10. Ice Shards

The Ice Shards quickly fire 3 projectiles that slow down enemies. They’re a perfect support weapon, they fire so fast that you can use them in between melee swings without stopping the combo, and slowing down enemies instead of freezing them means it can work with fire weapons as well. With this weapon you can slow enemies down to the point where they can’t do anything to stop you!

Why the Ice Shards are great

• Dual Binding is a setting in custom mode where you can set one button to alternate between both your weapons. Ice Shards is one of the best items to pair another weapon with in Dual Binding
• The Ice Shards slow down any enemy they hit, buying you time to finish your combo
• With the Kill Rhythm mutation the Ice Shards can make you attack faster on top of slowing down enemies

How to get the Ice Shards: Blueprint unlocks after beating the Time Keeper 3 times

Ice Shards stats

• Base DPS: 53
• Critical Multiplier: x1.22
• Special Effects: Enemies that are hit Slow Down for 3 sec

9: Infantry Bow

The Infantry Bow is a ranged weapon that works better when you use it as a melee weapon, dealing critical hits to targets at close range for some massive damage! While most ranged weapons opt for the opposite playstyle, trying to stay as far away from enemies as possible, the Infantry Bow isn’t afraid of getting up close and personal. It’s also a dual scaling weapon, and takes on a different role for either color. With Brutality, it’s a great off hand finisher, and with Tactics it can be a formidable source of damage

Why the Infantry Bow is great

• Dead Cells gives you plenty of options and opportunities to close the gap between you and your targets, making it easy to get the most out of the Infantry Bow’s crit condition
• With the Point Blank mutation you deal +30% extra damage when using a ranged weapon at close range, boosting the Infantry Bow’s already powerful crit damage
• Has a high chance of getting a pierce modifier, which can wipe out groups of enemies if you manage to find it

How to get the Infantry Bow: Blueprint drops from Undead Archers in the Prisoner’s Quarters
Infantry Bow stats

Base DPS: 73

Critical Multiplier: x2.8

Special Effects: Deals critical hits to nearby enemies

8: Boomerang

The Boomerang is one of the best support options in the game, piercing any and all enemies when you throw it, and when it comes back it’ll repeatedly bounce off of enemies, dealing enough damage to take out smaller enemies and stun larger opponents. While it’s best utilized to support your main damage dealer, it’s a powerful tool in it’s own right that can shred through hordes of enemies that many other high DPS ranged weapons would struggle against

Why the Boomerang is great

• Great for both taking out smaller enemies and stunning larger opponents
• Having built in pierce is a powerful ability, normally it takes a modifier for a ranged weapon to pierce just one enemy, but the Boomerang passes through everything on it’s own
• Ammo and Networking massively buff the Boomerang, giving you an extra one to throw and making every enemy it hits share damage 

How to get the Boomerang: Found in a secret area in High Peak Castle. Collect all 3 Castle Keys and unlock the room next to the Throne Room. There, you’ll either need an amulet that gives you extra jumps or the Homunculus Rune to get the blueprint

Boomerang Stats

• Base DPS: 156
• Critical Multiplier: N/A
• Special Effects: Returns to player, pierce all enemies

7. Magic Missiles

The Magic Missiles rapidly fire projectiles that automatically target enemies, and sure, there’s lots of other weapons that do the same, but the Magic Missiles are on another level. They fire extremely quickly, and the automatic targeting is the closest thing Dead Cells has to aimbot. It’s a strong and reliable weapon, with the projectiles dealing consistent damage and the tracking enabling you to hit enemies from angles that would never work with any other weapon

Why the Magic Missiles are great

• The Magic Missiles are strong on their own, not needing any particular skills or mutations to be useful, making them one of the most versatile ranged weapons
• The Wings of the Crow is a skill that makes the player float above enemies, where you can attack with the Magic Missiles from a safe distance. This can even work against bosses!
• It’s a simple weapon, but its strength is in that simplicity. There’s no ammo to manage, every time you fire you’re guaranteed to hit something, it’s foolproof!

How to get the Magic Missiles: Blueprint drops from Arbiters in the Cavern

Magic Missiles Stats

• Base DPS: 164
• Critical Multiplier: N/A
• Special Effects: Automatically targets the closest enemy

6. Ice Crossbow

The Ice Crossbow is a two-handed weapon that sets itself up for a combo, the first shot freezes enemies, and the second shot deals critical hits to frozen targets. For an ice weapon, it actually doesn’t use its freeze effect very often, mostly just to set up a combo, but that’s exactly why it’s so powerful! Normally, freeze has the downside of not working against bosses, but the Ice Crossbow breaks it’s own freeze before the boss can even that out, making it a surprisingly good choice for boss fights

Why the Ice Crossbow is great

• Scales with both Tactics and Survival, but I recommend Survival for the Kill Rhythm and Heart of Ice mutations
• Stunlocks stronger enemies, making it very effective against Elites and Bosses
• Consistently and reliable, since the Ice Crossbow’s rapid fire negates its own weaknesses there isn’t much out there that can counter this weapon

How to get the Ice Crossbow: Blueprint unlocks after beating the Time Keeper 4 times

Ice Crossbow Stats

• Base DPS: 47
• Crit Multiplier: x5
• Special Effects: Main attack freezes enemies, secondary fire deals crits to frozen targets

5. Hokuto’s Bow

The Hokuto’s Bow is a ranged weapon that inflicts enemies with a unique status effect that makes them take additional damage whenever they’re hit with another source of damage. In other words, it gives your attacks a boost. While it doesn’t deal much damage on its own, it’s one of the best support tools in the game, and could be the edge your build needs to get that next boss cell!

Why the Hokuto’s Bow is great

• Can significantly boost the damage output of your main weapon
• Works particularly well with rapid attacks and damage over time effects, since enemies marked by the Hokuto’s Bow take extra damage with each tick
• Doesn’t need to take up a weapon slot, with the Acrobatipack mutation you can just leave it in your backpack and get the full effect of the weapon

How to get the Hokuto’s Bow: Blueprint drops from Cannibals in the Clock Tower

Hokuto’s Bow stats

• Base DPS: 25
• Critical Multiplier: N/A
• Special Effects: Arrows mark enemies, causing them to take additional DPS from other sources

4. Electric Whip

Is it cheating to include this one on the list? Well, even if it feels more like a melee weapon, the game counts the Electric Whip as a ranged weapon, so here it is! The Electric Whip is a “ranged” weapon that fires in short range, high damage bursts, automatically targeting enemies and bouncing off to attack other nearby enemies. It also deals shock damage, which can also damage multiple enemies at once, making Electric Whip a fantastic option for crowd control

Why the Electric Whip is great

• Great for taking out groups of enemies, since the Electric Whip can attack multiple targets at once, and the shock damage affects nearby enemies as well
• Being a melee weapon that works as if it’s ranged, the Electric Whip is a great choice for Tactics builds as a fast firing primary alongside a heavy hitting secondary
• Pairs well with the Point Blank and Networking mutations, Point Blank is a flat damage increase and Networking works naturally with a weapon that can attack multiple targets at once

Where to find the Electric Whip: Automatically unlocked at the start of the game
Electric Whip stats

• Base DPS: 112
• Critical Multiplier: x1.8
• Special Effects: Ignores shields, inflicts shock damage

3. Explosive Crossbow

The Explosive Crossbow is a two handed weapon that fires explosive shots at enemies. It also comes with a secondary melee attack that explodes on contact and is great for creating distance between you and your enemies. Overall, the Explosive Crossbow is one of the best two handed weapons in Dead Cells, with AoE that makes it an excellent choice for dense biomes and more than enough raw power to take on bosses

Why the Explosive Crossbow is great

• Through its own raw power, the Explosive Crossbow is one of the most versatile items in Dead Cells, simply because it can brute force its way through most of what the game can throw at you
• The Explosion from both of your attacks stuns nearby enemies, leaving them wide open to a follow up shot
• Does lots of damage, blows stuff up, works with any skills or mutations you feel like using, what more could you possibly want?

How to get the Explosive Crossbow: Blueprint at the top of the tower in the Promenade of the Condemned. Find all 3 Gardener’s Keys to unlock it 

Explosive Crossbow stats

• Base DPS: 143
• Critical Multiplier: x1.7
• Special Effects: Fired bolts explode, explosions stun enemies

2. Fire Blast

We all love to use fire attacks, and when it comes to Dead Cells you get several different options, but which one is the best? Easy, the one with the most firepower! Fire Blast channels a stream of fire in front of the player, incinerating everything that stands in your way. With flames that pierce through everything, set the ground on fire, and apply multiple stacks of burn damage, Fire Blast has everything you need to bring on the heat

Why the Fire Blast is great

• Deals critical hits to enemies covered in oil, and with how common oil modifiers are on your skills, you’ll be dealing constant critical damage
• One of the few ranged weapons that scale with both Brutality and Tactics, and is one of the strongest weapons in that group of items
• Modifiers that give this weapon extra damage also apply to the Burn status effect, making Fire Blast one of the best choices for damage over time

Where to get the Fire Blast: Blueprint drops from Maskers in the Corrupted Prison

Fire Blast Stats

• Base DPS: 169
• Critical Multiplier: x1.3
• Special effects: Inflicts burn, pierces through enemies and lights the ground on fire

1. Alchemic Carbine

The Alchemic Carbine is a curious case, it’s a ranged weapon with shots that deal low damage and burst into a toxic cloud. On paper it would work best as a support weapon, but in practice it deals formidable damage over time! That’s because its toxic cloud applies multiple stacks of poison, each one inflicting high damage with every tick. This thing melts anything that comes in contact with it, making it the strongest ranged weapon in Dead Cells

Why the Alchemic Carbine is great

• The Alchemic Carbine isn’t limited by ammo, meaning you can fire as many toxic clouds as you want at the enemy, enough to fill up an entire biome if you felt like it!
• Pairs well with the Barnacle, a deployable skill that deals critical hits to poisoned targets
• Can be used with Acrobatipack to add a toxic cloud to any other ranged weapon, without sacrificing any of the Carbine’s inherent power

How to get the Alchemic Carbine: Secret area in the Ancient Sewers, look for a wall that can be rolled through with leaves marking the hidden passage

Alchemic Carbine Stats

• Base DPS: 9
• Critical Multiplier: N/A
• Special Effects: Shots explode into a toxic cloud

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