In this Fallout Shelter best weapon guide, we will show you the ten best weapons in the game. Which weapon will be best for you depends on your play style, but here we have everything you could possibly need to be covered. You’ll never need to worry about your Vault’s safety again.
Fallout Shelter has many fantastic weapons. Some of these are better suited for those out in the wasteland, while others are better for your Vault Dwellers at home. Bear this in mind while you go through this list, and choose which Vault Dwellers have each weapon carefully.
Top Ten Fallout Shelter Best Weapon List
- Dragon’s Maw
- MIRV
- Vengeance
- Fire Hydrant Bat
- Miss Launcher
- Virgil’s Rifle
- Technician’s Revenge
- Relentless Raider Sword
- Destabilizer
- Mean Green Monster
1. Dragon’s Maw

Average Damage: 25.5
Dragon’s Maw is straight up the most consistent weapon when it comes to dealing high amounts of damage. It will absolutely destroy whatever enemies your Vault Dwellers come up against, and you know there are some scary faces out there.
Best Use: Exploring
The best use for this weapon is with Vault Dwellers, who are out exploring the wasteland. Sending a group of three out, with two of them holding a Dragon’s Maw, and the third using a weapon with good AoE damage is the ultimate combination.
This weapon is a legendary variant of the Plasma Thrower, and it’s pretty hard to come by. You could be waiting a long time before you see one. Then again, some players see them drop early on. If you do get one, be sure not to waste it, and keep a close eye on the Vault Dweller you equip it to.
2. MIRV

Average Damage: 24.5
The MIRV is a very interesting, and powerful weapon indeed. It’s a variant of the Fat Man, which you might recognize the name of from other Fallout games. It’s essentially a catapult for mini-nukes, and it even has its own unique animation.
Best Use: Vault Defence
This weapon deals colossal amounts of damage and douses the enemy in radiation. It’s ideal for taking down groups of enemies, such as Raiders. You want to keep it for when you need it most because it’s not that useful when it comes to individual enemies.
In Fallout lore, this weapon was designed to deal with entrenched enemy positions. The idea was that you’d deal a lot of damage with the initial explosion, but the radiation is what would finish the enemy off.
3. Vengeance

Average Damage: 23.5
Vengeance is a unique Gatling Laser that rips enemies to shreds. In fact, it’s the most powerful variant of this weapon type, so if you manage to pick it up, you should count yourself lucky.
Best Use: Vault Defence
If you’re after a weapon that looks good on your Vault Dwellers, look no further. It’s also quite amazing to see someone light up a group of enemies with this thing. Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything more dreadful and beautiful in Fallout Shelter.
In terms of exploration, this might not be the best weapon for a Vault Dweller to lug around. Yes, it does a lot of damage, but you’ll want to be dealing more damage to a broader area while out and about. Vengeance is better suited for Vault defense.
4. Fire Hydrant Bat

Average Damage: 25
The Fire Hydrant Bat is the best melee weapon in Fallout Shelter. When it comes to damage, there is no rival in that department. The reason we’ve ranked it outside of the top three is that it requires Vault Dwellers to get up close and personal. Sometimes that leads to disaster.
Best Use: Exploration
While this weapon is incredibly powerful, it’s got some issues. These may get patched out in the future, but at the moment, some Vault Dwellers using this might start to ignore enemies who have been shot.
Sticking this on a Vault Dweller while they explore is also a great tactic. It’ll keep them well-defended and add some diversity to your team if you’ve got two or three of them out there.
5. Miss Launcher

Average Damage: 22.5
Nope, that’s not a typo. This Missile Launcher is called Miss Launcher. She packs in the most damage out of all the Missile Launchers in the game and deals damage to all enemies in the area. This is a great weapon to take out into the wasteland, allowing Vault Dwellers to smash all of their enemies thoroughly.
Best Use: Exploration or Vault Defence
With that said, it’s also perfect inside the Vault as well. A room full of Radroaches or Molerats will be obliterated if a Vault Dweller fires this off in there.
The only downside is that this is a tough weapon to acquire. You might come across one or two in an entire playthrough if you’re lucky. Put it to good use if you get one because it could be the difference between your Vault’s survival or ultimate demise.
6. Virgil’s Rifle

Average Damage: 22.5
Virgil’s Rifle is an Institute weapon, a variant of the Institute Rifle. It deals fairly consistent damage, which makes it so good to have both inside and outside of your Vault.
Best Use: Vault Defence
The damage it deals will cripple a foe in one hit. That’s a huge advantage when you’re being overrun, and that can happen fast if you’re not careful.
Once again, this is a legendary weapon, so don’t expect to see it too often. When you do get one, equip it on a Vault Dweller at your Vault’s door. This is where I always suffer a colossal raid that kills off most of my Vault Dwellers. If you can cripple a few Raiders here, it might save you.
7. Technician’s Revenge

Average Damage: 21.7
Technician’s Revenge is the most powerful Junk Jet weapon that you’ll get in Fallout Shelter. The idea behind these weapons is that they simply fire Junk at enemies. Sending old cans, scrap metal, and toilet paper flying in their direction.
Best Use: Vault Defence
Thankfully this weapon isn’t that difficult to get your hands on. The longer you play, the more likely you are to come across it. When you get one, don’t waste it. You can craft it inside your Vault, so keep an eye out for the plans and get them in action as soon as you can.
The best use I can see for this weapon is inside the Vault. It’s the perfect weapon for door defense, or just clearing out any pesky infestations when they crop up.
8. Relentless Raider Sword

Average Damage: 22
This weapon is pretty much a replica of the Bumper Sword in Fallout: New Vegas. However, it’s also one of the most powerful unique melee weapons in Fallout Shelter.
Best Use: Exploration
What you’re looking at here is one of two legendary melee weapons in the game. If you pick this up, put it on a Vault Dweller and get them exploring immediately. They’ll slice all their foes in half.
This weapon shouldn’t be squandered or kept a secret; get it used. I’ve found it best as the melee variant in a group of explorers, but you might find it more useful on the Vault doors if you’re regularly raided.
9. Destabilizer

Average Damage: 20.5
You’ll be happy to know that this is the alien entry in the Fallout Shelter best weapon list. This is the most powerful version of the Alien Blaster, and your enemies will definitely feel it.
Best Use: Exploration
You probably won’t come across too many of these, since they’re among the rarest weapons in the game. When you do, though, make sure it’s getting used.
I wouldn’t waste this inside your Vault; a weapon of this renown needs to be used in the wasteland. Get a Vault Dweller with it out there, and slay all the Super Mutants you can.
10. Mean Green Monster

Average Damage: 20
This is the best variant of the Plasma Rifle in Fallout Shelter. While it’s the final entry on our list, that doesn’t make it bad at all. In fact, it’s probably the most accessible weapon on the list.
Sending Vault Dwellers out into the Wasteland is your best chance of picking this weapon up. It’s not that common, but it’s more accessible than most of the others we’ve mentioned.
When you’ve got one, get it back out into the Wasteland. It’ll provide exceptional ranged damage. Something I’m sure your team of Vault Dwellers will appreciate. Mine certainly would have.
Conclusions
Like out other best weapon lists, we want to give you some idea of what you should be looking to use moving forward. The thing is that it all depends on how you play Fallout Shelter.
If you’re someone who likes to get a Vault up and running but send Vault Dwellers out as soon as possible, look to get your hands on Dragon’s Maw, Vengeance, and MIRV early on. These weapons are designed to keep your Vault Dwellers alive out in the field.
If, however, you prefer to turtle away in your mountain and leave the outside world alone, then melee weapons will be your best friend. Yes, having something like Miss Launcher is also going to be hugely beneficial, but you want that quick kill rate so you can easily take down any threats that get in through the walls.
If there’s a weapon that you think should be on this list, but isn’t, please let us know what it is in the comments.