WARDOGS Weapon Tier List
Value rankings from Closed Alpha/Beta catalogues — S-tier means you can rebuy it after a dumb death.
BULKHEAD has talked about 37 weapons at Early Access launch. Community databases sat in the low-to-mid 30s during tests depending on what counted as a unique vendor row. This list does not pretend to be a datamined DPS sheet. It ranks how you should spend if you care about Control Zone ticks. Dollar figures are playtest-recorded. Recheck the vendor.
For attachments, ammo, and armour-versus-ghillie, use loadouts. For the philosophy, use the tier list hub.
S-tier — default lives
Galil A (~$2,200, 5.56). The ranking magnet for new wallets. M4-like reach at a price you can lose. If it is unlocked, it is the rifle this wiki will keep recommending until something cheaper shoots as straight.
T-21 (~$600, 5.56). Poverty king. Full auto on a starter budget. You will outgrow it. You will also be glad it exists after a tank death.
GGX 17-class pistols (~$200). Not glamorous. The difference between “reloading in a stairwell” and “dead in a stairwell.” Every life.
Faction starter rifles (Bushmaster M17S-class, $0). Fine for the first spawn of the night. Not a plan.
A-tier — pay for the upgrade
M4 S (~$2,800, 5.56, 800 rpm, ~500 m, Infantry 20 / lump unlock in catalogues). The benchmark. Lightweight, flexible, expensive enough that two deaths sting. Unlock it, then still ask whether the Galil would have been smarter this life.
AK74 (~$1,600, 5.45). Cheap-feeling mid. Good when 5.56 is contested or you want a different recoil pattern. Watch ammo stock.
M249 SAW (~$3,200). Zone denial. Park it on a tower stair or a Hot Zone window. Heavy, hungry, worth it when your faction is holding.
MP5 / PP-19 Vityaz / AMP-9 ($900–$1,500, 9×19). Interior and tower fights. Medic XP tracks in some catalogues — take that as “this is the rifle you hold while you defib,” not a class lock.
B-tier — job kits
M500 shotgun (~$1,200). Stairs. Not valleys. If the current map zone is a foundry hall, leave it.
Marksman rifles (BMR-308 ~$6,000 class). Punish the long edges of a 2×2 km square. Require discipline not to rim-camp the whole match while ticks happen in the courtyard. See how to win.
SUPER-45 (~$2,600). Close-range bully with a .45 tax. Fine if you already live in buildings.
Launchers. Not always on highlight reels. Mandatory the moment vehicles start deleting your occupancy blob. A rifle S-tier is a C-tier if a Humvee owns your street and nobody packed HEAT.
C-tier — rich-kid problems
FAL (~$6,500, .308). Violent and pricey. A-tier performance in the right hands, C-tier purchase for a $10,000 account.
AMR 50 (~$8,800, 2,000 m class, ~$250 ammo boxes in catalogues). A sightline you defend like a vehicle. Two deaths and you are in T-21 jail. Fun. Not default.
Ghillie + long rifle. The ghillie eats the armour slot and blocks killcam. Strong for a stalker life, weak for a Hot Zone brawl. Discussed in BULKHEAD’s own feedback video.
D-tier — wallet damage
Any primary plus optic plus luxury ammo plus a personal vehicle that together exceed what you can rebuild this match. The gun model does not matter. The ledger does.
A-91 / KH-2002 style burst rifles showed up in catalogues with incomplete prices. Until the vendor shows a number, treat them as unknown, not as secret S-tier.
How to read damage claims
Community calculators posted M4-class 5.56 in the neighbourhood of 30 chest / 65 head on an unarmoured 100 HP dummy with 800 rpm. That is useful colour, not a patch-proof TTK bible. Armour, range, and incoming third parties will ruin your spreadsheet. Play the census, not the dummy.
Shopping order for a new account
- Pistol + T-21 or Galil + medical + loose FMJ.
- A sight you can actually zero.
- MP5 or shotgun only if the current zone is interiors.
- M4 when you can eat the death.
- M249 when your faction is holding.
- FAL / AMR when you are bored and rich.
Then stop reading this list in the vendor. Go stand in the zone. The budget tool will add the numbers if you want a pre-match card.
Related pages
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common WARDOGS questions.
What is the best WARDOGS gun for beginners?
A replaceable 5.56 — Galil if unlocked, T-21 if not — plus a pistol. See getting started and loadouts.
Why is the M4 not S-tier?
It is an A-tier workhorse with an unlock gate and a $2,800 tag. Excellent when you can rebuy it. Not the first purchase after a wipe.
Are these prices final for Early Access?
No. They are community-recorded from tests. Steam Early Access on 10 September 2026 can retune anything. Check the vendor.
Do factions have unique guns?
Starter rifles differ. The vendor catalogue is shared in current builds. Identity notes are on the faction hub.