Weapons
There are many weapons available for the different grinders, each with different usability features. Currently, there are three classes of weapons: Small Weapons (3x Missiles, Minigun, Small Cannon, Small Laser, and Pulsar) Large Weapons (Railgun, Large Cannon, Large Laser, and Scattershot) Extra Large Weapons (Skyjacker Missiles, Hammer Missiles, and 8x Missiles) For information about which grinders are compatible with each weapon, see the Grinders page.
Cannon
Cannon| The king of mid-range, cannons can help make your Grinder versatile at both ends. It's great for those introductory volleys as it deals both impact and splash damage. Because each shell arcs over the course of its trajectory, estimating successive rounds is key to its effectiveness. |
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Drill
Drill| The Drill is currently the only active melee weapon in the game. It can only be equipped by the Drill. When activated, vertical jets propel the Drill downward and into any opponents unlucky enough to end up below it. It deals continuous damage as long as the Drill is in contact with its prey. |
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Hammer
Hammer| This giant cruise missile can be guided by the pilot's gaze or stick (change in settings) for targeted explosive glory. As long as the pilot holds the trigger the Hammer can be guided for the duration of the missile's timer. Once the trigger is released, the Hammer will accelerate in a straight line until impact or timer expires. The hammer can controlled with or without the use of the drop-down scope.
If you are having trouble hitting your target, try aiming for the ground next to the target. the Hammer has a large splash radius. Be sneaky. Practice guiding the Hammer along the ground to snake around obstacles. Be sneakier. Aim the the Hammer up to a high elevation and then release it to fire down on top of the target. Help your teammates. Any weapon can shoot a Hammer out of the sky, some weapons are just better at it than others. If you hear the "sonic boom" of a released Hammer nearby, take action because you are probably the target. When using a 2 Hammer load out, space out or stagger your missiles. If they are too close together, then if one is destroyed the blast radius will destroy the other. Additional discussion on the hammer can be found here: https://www.reddit.com/r/VoxMachinae/comments/i1zr0h/hammers_this_is_not_a_guide_but_an_observation/ |
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Laser
Laser| Melt some metal and add this hot and heavy weapon to your arsenal. If the Laser is not in contact with the target, for the entire 1.5 sec., it will only deliver partial damage but will still count as a “hit”. Pay attention to the range finder on your aiming reticle, the range for Lasers is not as far-reaching as you think. There does seem to be damage reduction at long range for the laser. So how far you are from the target is a factor when dealing damage.
Tips and Notes: Pros: Improved accuracy, no tracking or leading a target. Not a projectile, immediately hits target Great at removing limbs
Must maintain connection to target to get full damage. Less range than Cannon. Damage Falloff at long range |
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Minigun
Minigun| Miniguns have both the longest rate of sustainable fire and the lowest heat signature in the game. Miniguns are extremely effective at close range, but their projectiles are able cross the distance of any map to harass a target. Their damage output will radically decrease at longer ranges as the spread of projectiles will increase with range. The bullets themselves maintain their damage dealing property, but you're just not landing as many at greater distances.
It is extremely difficult to use pinpoint accuracy with this weapon as you will be hitting several armor plates at once. At first it may appear to be ineffective but after some time multiple armor plates will be stripped at once. Miniguns make an excellent team support weapon since it is able to sweep the entire battlefield and cause targets to move. In the hands of an experienced pilot, Miniguns can become an effective frontline weapon.
Due to the noise from a constant barrage of bullets striking the GDR, Miniguns have an added psychological effect on the target, it will cause even the most experienced pilot to seek cover. It is common for a pilot to use 1-2 Miniguns to offset the heat generated by larger weapons. Effective at countering Drills and Hammer missiles. They are loud in the cockpit and will make it difficult to hear anything other than your own screaming. Who cares? With heat this low just hold the triggers down and giv'em hell!
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Missile Pack
Missile Pack| A surefire classic, Missiles in Vox Machinae seek to the spot where you were aiming the reticle when fired. Launching in rapid succession, missiles unleash a trail of destruction. Be sure to lead a moving target and take into account their distance and a missile's travel time.
All missile launchers track to the aiming reticle. While the 3x Missile Pack is available on all GDRs with a small mount, the 8x Missile Pack occupies the extra-large slot, which is only present on a few GDRs. The 8x Missile Pack is fixed in place on the body of the GDR (it does not swivel to folow the aiming reticle), so accounting for the arc as the missile is launched is important. |
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Pulsar
Pulsar| The Pulsar doles out a triple shot of small, plasma-induced projectiles that explode upon impact. The radius of the explosion is large enough to do minor damage to surrounding armor plates. Pulsars “splash” damage, while nowhere near as large as the Skyjacker, have been found to be somewhat effective against Hammer missiles.
Tips and Notes: The Pulsar is thought of as the least effective weapon in the game right now. Hey, something must be at the bottom of a list. Pulsars are very “floaty” and require a lot of aiming compensation to hit a target at range or while you are moving. Maybe Pulsars need a dedicated pilot to give the weapon the time and practice needed to make more of an impact on the battlefield. Are you that pilot?
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Railgun
Railgun| The railgun fires a devastatingly swift rail that can penetrate multiple layers of metal for maximum internal damage. Charge up the accelerator coils by holding fire for a few seconds and release after it's armed. Be careful not to hold onto a charge for too long as doing so continues to build up your grinder's heat level.
Unlike the other weapons, the Railgun only suffers slightl from gravity from a gravity; also there is no damage fall-off with long range shots. Tips and Notes: Rails have "breakthrough damage". If a Railgun's shot does more damage than an armor plate's hitpoints, then any remaining damage is carried through to the core. "Leave one in the chamber". A fully charged and held Railgun shot will fire automatically upon your Grinder being destroyed. It takes two shots to knock off a Hopper's arm, three for a Dredge's arm. The Rook's arm? Forget about those beefy arms and aim center mass. it's faster. |
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Scattershot
Scattershot| It's a shotgun, doesn't get much more complicated than that with this staple of warfare. Firing a simultaneous cluster of 8 projectiles, it'll rip through armor like nobody's business and can reduce an enemy to scrap in the hands of a talented pilot. Just be mindful of your range since the pellets spread out slightly as they travel outward, making farther targets much harder to hit.
See Goldbricker's detailed study of this weapon here: https://www.reddit.com/r/VoxMachinae/comments/iaznnp/vox_machinae_scattershot_weapon_test/ |
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Skyjacker
Skyjacker| The primary anti-air defense weapon available to pilots, the Skyjacker fills a unique role in combat. Resembling a fast moving, purple flare or starburst, the Skyjacker will only detonate when it passes near a fast-moving target, be it a GDR or Hammer missile. The resulting explosion has a large area-of-effect that distributes damage across several armor plates. A Skyjacker striking a non-moving target will not detonate and will only deliver little or no damage.
The mechanics of the Skyjacker are quite large and therefore can only be equipped by the Dredge, Catalyst and Overhaul Grinders.
Flying, fast moving targets can prevent the Skyjacker from detonating by shutting down the GDR’s engine; either with the key or any module that shuts down the GDR. The Worm can also cause the SJ to detonate. You can use this to “splash” any GDRs standing nearby. If you are running a Skyjacker, then you are the main Hammer missile defense for your team! Even if nobody is jumping, it is still a good idea to fire a SJ at a target to remind them to stay on the ground.
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Retired Weapons
These weapons have been removed from Vox Machinae for one reason or another.
Flak Cannon
| This versatile gem is great for crowd control, shooting 4 consecutive slugs that will explode when nearing an enemy grinder or when they reach their max firing distance. Use it to shoot out those pesky airborne baddies, or pop off a round next to an enemy behind cover for a splash-damage surprise. The shell's large explosive radius can damage nearby friendly grinders if you're not careful.
The Flak Cannon was scrapped and replaced by the more-specialized Scattershot and Skyjacker. |
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References
- Vox Machinae Blog: The Weapons of Vox
- Vox Machinae: the exciting inciting insights of Weapon Stats
- Vox Machinae Blog: Spring Update Incoming
- Vox Machinae Blog: Summer Stylin'