How to Find Rare Weapons Quick

Don't wait for legendary gear! Learn the fastest ways to grab powerful Rare weapons in Horizon Forbidden West by progressing the main story and visiting key merchants.

Alright, so you're looking to snag some of those sweet, sweet rare weapons in Horizon Forbidden West, huh? I get it. Those starting Uncommon ones are okay for a bit, but they really start to fall off against anything tougher than a Scrapper. The good news is, upgrading your gear is probably the single biggest damage boost you can get, so it's totally worth hunting for those blue (Rare), purple (Very Rare), and orange (Legendary) weapons.

You can find new weapons in a few ways: merchants, finishing quests (main and side), looting chests, tackling optional stuff like Rebel Camps, earning medals at Hunting Grounds, or collecting sets like the Black Boxes. The main thing holding you back early on is just story progress, as a lot of areas and activities are locked until you push the main questline forward. So, the absolute fastest way to get your hands on better gear is to just keep pushing the main story.

The real game-changer for getting rare weapons quickly is progressing the main story until you reach the quest “Death’s Door.” Once you're there, you'll unlock access to buy some seriously good upgrades from various merchants. Don't worry about holding out for the absolute best gear right away; there are plenty of rare-quality weapons you can grab that will make your journey through the Forbidden West way smoother.

Here’s the breakdown:

First, you absolutely need to finish the main quest [The Embassy]. This opens up the eastern parts of the Forbidden West. Shortly after, you’ll hit the quest Death’s Door. Keep an eye out as you go through this quest – you’ll pass a Campfire with a Hunter nearby. This Hunter is your first real opportunity to buy some awesome new weapons:

• [Frost Hunter Bow]
• Forgefire Tripcaster]
• [Slicing Shredder Gauntlet]

Once you've wrapped up Death’s Door, you'll be able to head over to Plainsong. There's another Hunter there who sells the same weapons you found earlier, plus a few more:

• [Slicing Hunter Bow]
• [Acid Warrior Bow]
• [Shearing Warrior Bow]
• [Hardweave Sharpshot Bow]

Just remember, you'll need two things to buy these weapons: Metal Shards and usually a specific machine part. The good news is that for these early rare weapons, the requirements are pretty low. You can usually get the parts you need by just taking down the machines however you like. Knocking off specific components isn't usually necessary at this stage, though that changes when you start looking to upgrade these rare weapons later on.