Fallout 76: 10 Best Heavy Weapons Detailed

Fallout 76 will have you well-stocked with arms and armor to take on the nightmares of the Appalachian wasteland, but how do you know which weapons are worth holding onto and which are better off left behind or sold? Here are the 10 best heavy weapons in Fallout 76.

Best Heavy Weapons in Fallout 76

10. Cryolator

The Cryolator is great fun. It also happens to be one of the best heavy weapons in Fallout 76. Keeping it stocked with ammo can be hard, but if you have a healthy supply of Cryo cells, which you can craft or buy from an Ammo Converter, you can certainly get a ton of usage here. It can freeze your enemies (which I find incredibly useful) and confers -85% movement speed.

• Freezing effects
• Damage: 24/30/36
• Ammo: Cryo Cell
• Magazine Size
• Fire Rate: 91
• Range: 120
• Accuracy: 70

9. .50 Cal Machine Gun

For those who like their heavy weapons to be loud and fast, the .50 Cal Machine Gun is a perfect fit. You’ll riddle enemies up with holes in no time with this beast, and while it lacks some of the bells and whistles of other guns, the great range and impressive fire rate make up for it. You’ll need .50 round ammo for this one, but luckily, you’ll find this pretty easy.

• Damage: 29/36/43
• Ammo: .50 round
• Magazine size: 250
• Fire Rate: 91
• Range: 204
• Accuracy: 47

8. The Flamer

Cut from the same cloth as the Cryolator, The Flamer is built to shred up any organic enemies you come across. Humans, ghouls, and other fleshy abominations you might come across will quickly regret it when you whip this out in the midst of a firefight. You’ll need fuel to use The Flamer, but you can find this by either crafting it or defeating Flame Floaters.

• Damage: 29/32/36
• Ammo: Fuel
• Magazine size: 91
• Fire Rate: 91
• Range: 264
• Accuracy: 60

7. Minigun

The Minigun is one of the staples of the Fallout franchise. Typically wielded by those in Power Armor, Fallout 76 gives you the opportunity to wield it just as you are. It boasts one of the most impressive fire rates in the entire game and is useful in any fight against multiple enemies or one tough opponent. It uses 5mm rounds, which are relatively easy to find and craft, so you’ll never be in need of a restock for too long. It’s not the most accurate gun, but its ferocious firing rate and decent range still give you a great chance to deal some serious damage.

• Damage: 20/24
• Ammo: 5mm round
• Magazine size: 500
• Fire Rate: 182
• Range: 204
• Accuracy: 47

6. Plasma Caster

The Plasma Caster comes with a unique effect that turns enemies into plasma when defeated, but that’s not why it’s on this list. The damage numbers that the Plasma Caster deals are top-level, and it’s one of the best weapons to use for close- to medium-range combat. Plasma Cartridges and Ultracite are a little tough to find if you’re not crafting them, but you’ll generally be able to find them in random loot boxes throughout the world.

• Effect: Turns enemies into plasma on occasion.
• Damage: 60/68/76
• Magazine size: 20
• Fire Rate: 20
• Range: 120

5. Auto Grenade Launcher

Anytime the words auto, grenade, and launcher come together, you know you’ve got yourself a piece of dangerous equipment. You can find this when you kill Scorchers or Super Mutants deep into the game. It has a quick time to kill, but you’ll need to be careful with your ammo supply. It runs out quick and 40mm Grenade Rounds aren’t easy to find. However, you’ll find more if you have the Auto Grenade Launcher equipped. As a fully automatic weapon, the Auto Grenade Launcher boasts some of the best per-second damage in the entire game and adds AoE onto that as well, making it the total package when it comes to pure damage.

• Damage: 107/119
• Ammo: 40mm Grenade Round
• Magazine size: 12
• Fire Rate: 16
• Range: 120
• Accuracy: 55

4. Gauss Minigun

This is another flavor of minigun. The big difference comes in how damaging each shot is. While the fire rate is lower than the Minigun, the Gauss Minigun makes up for it with impressive AoE damage and heavy damage per shot. The 2mm EM cartridge ammo can be crafted or purchased at an Ammo Converter but not found in the wild, so ammo will be at a premium here. It can be upgraded to unleash energy damage, as well, and performs as one of the best automatic heavy weapons in the game.

• Damage: 41/49
• Ammo: 2mm EC, Ultracite
• Magazine size
• Fire Rate: 91
• Range: 204
• Accuracy: 36

3. Gatling Plasma

The Gatling Plasma is the energy version of the Gaus Minigun and performs just as effectively. It’s an incredibly powerful weapon with surprising range and one of the best accuracy ratings for a minigun-type weapon in Fallout 76. You can find Plasma Core ammo in higher-level areas, and it can be crafted as well, but this will be tough to do consistently, depending on your resources. Whether it’s PvP or PvE, the Gatling Plasma will be a devasting force for you. One slight issue is the time it takes to start spinning, but you shouldn’t have much issue as long as you anticipate the fight from a distance.

• Damage: 43/50/58
• Ammo: Plasma Core, Ultracite
• Magazine size: 500
• Fire Rate: 91
• Range: 204
• Accuracy: 41

2. Gatling Laser

For the Gatling Gun fans, the Gatling Laser ups the ante considerably. Although it has fewer damaging shots, it boasts one of the highest fire rates in Fallout 76. It uses Fusion Core ammo that can be found on every set of Power Armor, as well as in ammo boxes throughout the game. You can also craft the ammo at chemistry stations. The high fire rate also supports a strong range for the gun, and it can quickly shred any armored enemy you come across. It also has one of the more interesting designs in the game and feels like a truly unique weapon.

• Damage: 18/21/25
• Ammo: Fusion Core
• Magazine size: 500
• Fire Rate: 182
• Range: 204
• Accuracy: 56

1. Pepper Shaker

With a name like that, you should expect some interesting capabilities, and you’d be right. The Pepper Shaker is an Auto Shotgun that can completely annihilate anything in close-range combat and also has a solid range for longer-distance encounters. You can find the ammo everywhere, as shotgun shells are abundant in Fallout 76. In terms of damage per second, the Pepper Shaker is a monstrosity. I like to take down enemies big and small with this thing, and its bullet spread allows you to hit multiple enemies at once while using it.

• Damage: 50/55/60
• Ammo: Shotgun Shell, Fusion Cell, Plasma Cartridge
• Magazine size 50
• Fire Rate: 41
• Range: 96
• Accuracy: 32

Those are the best heavy weapons in Fallout 76. There are others to check out, but these are the ones we feel will get the job done every time. For more tips and tricks, check out our FO76 guides section.