Best Weapon in Nier Automata: Top Choices for Different Playstyles

Selecting the best weapon in Nier Automata depends heavily on your preferred combat rhythm and character setup. With four distinct weapon categories available, players can customize their offensive loadouts to maximize speed, raw damage, or defensive utility. Finding the ideal combination ensures you can navigate difficult encounters across all routes efficiently.

Fast and Agile Small Swords for Balanced Combat

Small swords serve as the cornerstone of fluid combat in Nier Automata due to their lightning-fast attack animations and seamless combo transitions. Weapons like Virtuous Contract offer excellent attack speed, allowing players to land rapid strikes while maintaining complete mobility against aggressive machine lifeforms. This weapon class excels at maintaining constant pressure without leaving you vulnerable to counterattacks.

For players who value sustained hit counts and easy dodges, pairing a small sword with high-mobility plug-in chips creates a relentless offensive style. The low recovery time on light attacks makes it easy to dodge away from incoming strikes at a moment's notice. It is the most reliable option for players who prefer aggressive, close-quarters skirmishing.

Devastating Large Swords for Heavy Impact

Large swords trade mobility for massive area-of-effect damage and immense staggering potential against larger targets. Equipping weapons like Fang of the Twin Crows allows players to crush dense groups of machine enemies with sweeping, heavy strikes. The sheer force of these heavy weapons can interrupt enemy attack animations and break through tough guards.

While the startup animations are slower, timing your heavy attacks properly results in unmatched burst damage during boss fights. Combining a large sword with damage-boosting chips amplifies each strike into a high-impact blow. This playstyle rewards patient players who focus on positioning and precise punish windows.

Spears for Ranged Precision and Crowd Control

Spears provide exceptional forward reach, making them perfect for keeping dangerous foes at a safe distance during chaotic encounters. The Virtuous Dignity spear offers long-range thrusts that pierce through multiple enemies lined up in a row. This reach allows players to inflict steady damage while staying out of the effective range of melee-focused machines.

Utilizing a spear in your secondary weapon slot enables rapid distance closing through charge attacks. Players who favor tactical spacing will find spears invaluable for controlling the battlefield pace. The extended range also provides a safer opportunity to apply status effects and chip damage.

Combat Braces for High-Speed Hand-to-Hand Brawling

Combat braces represent the fastest melee option in the game, focusing on rapid-fire punches and kicks that quickly build up combo counters. Weapons like Demon's Cry reward aggressive playstyles by delivering rapid bursts of damage at point-blank range. The sheer speed of combat braces makes them ideal for isolating single targets and overwhelming them before they can react.

Mastering combat braces requires close-range positioning, but the trade-off is exceptional single-target DPS. When paired with critical hit plug-in chips, these weapons can melt through enemy health bars in seconds. They are best suited for experienced players who can consistently dodge while staying right next to their opponents.