Mortal Shell 2 Weapons Guide: All Known Weapons, Locations & Upgrades

This is an Exploration Hub for launch-window weapon searches. It keeps route coverage concise and hands detailed acquisition steps to the linked location pages.

The launch roster below contains eight identified primary weapons. The Iconoclast is confirmed as Prologue starting gear, but this site has not created a standalone location page for it. That page gap does not justify inventing a longer route.

For the broader confirmed scope of combat, Shells, weapon upgrades, and exploration, start with the Mortal Shell II gameplay guide.

There is no official or controlled-test S/A/B damage ranking in the current evidence. The useful comparison is route fit and supported weapon identity:

Treat these as practical categories, not a promise that one weapon wins every Shell, boss, or patch matchup.

The Iconoclast is obtained during the Prologue when the game unlocks the Harros Shell. It is therefore not a missing endgame route or a weapon that requires a late dungeon. Current cross-checks describe it as a light, one-handed sword and starting primary weapon.

This hub does not create a separate Iconoclast route page because the supported fact is short: unlock Harros in the Prologue and receive the weapon. Use the gameplay guide for the broader Prologue boundary.

The Great Martyr’s Blade is found at the end of the Martyr’s Prison route.

The supported route begins in the open world near Widow’s Overlook, continues toward Mushroom Village Beacon and Blackridge Hamlet, enters Holding Cells Dungeon, and then reaches Martyr’s Prison. Inside Holding Cells, the checked guides use an upper-level shortcut with a hidden button and an illusory-wall route before exiting through the rope.

In Martyr’s Prison, progress through the dungeon and clear the final chamber. The weapon is a direct pickup in the gated room that opens after the encounter. It is not currently documented here as an NPC reward or a confirmed boss drop.

Use the full Great Martyr’s Blade route for the dungeon steps, optional Gloomshade Grove checkpoint, and the distinction between transcript-supported timing and hard in-game requirements.

This is the clearest heavy-weapon route in the current evidence set. It is useful for players who want a named heavy option after opening the world and are willing to complete a dungeon chain. It is not a Prologue pickup and should not be presented as available at literal game start.

The Axatana is found inside the Forgotten Tower.

The launch route starts from Marrow Keep Beacon, uses the south-side shortcut toward the Outskirts of Mammon, passes Castigator’s Keep, and continues through the tower. Near the final gated room, use the nearby switch or button, then enter the room and pick up the weapon.

The route is early relative to the full game, but it is not an immediate fresh-New-Game reward and it is not a Prologue weapon. The checked footage shows a strong enemy in the final room; whether defeating that enemy is strictly required is not confirmed.

Read the Axatana location guide for the step-by-step route. It also records the important distinction between an observed +5 inventory state and a guaranteed upgrade level for every player.

The Axatana is a reasonable early detour for players who want to test its weapon modes and are comfortable sprinting through a dangerous Mammon route. Treat claims that it is “the best weapon” as creator opinion, not as an official ranking.

The launch-build Axe & Dagger route uses the Chapel Key and the Shrine of Trials.

The current route is associated with the chapel near Mushroom Village. Find the hidden statue and rope route for the Chapel Key, use the key on the chapel door, and continue into the Shrine of Trials. The checked launch-build guides place the weapon on a pedestal after the shrine’s puzzle and combat sequence.

This matters because some older Open Beta pages place the weapon on a table inside Mushroom Village Gate Beacon. That is not the route this launch page treats as current. Use the Axe & Dagger guide for the Chapel Key path, the “Gaze Upon Your King” solution, and the explicit beta-location warning.

The Axe & Dagger is the most practical first stop for players who want an early dual-wield option in the Fainweald route. That is a route recommendation, not a universal damage or tier ranking.

Official game descriptions confirm that Mortal Shell II has deeper weapon upgrades, but the current evidence set does not provide a complete upgrade-material list, universal cost table, or full upgrade progression for every weapon.

The current location evidence supports narrower claims:

• One Great Martyr’s Blade run showed the weapon at +4 on pickup.
• One Axatana run showed the weapon at +5 in the inventory.
• Those observed states are not proof that every player receives the same level.
• The current Axe & Dagger evidence supports the pickup route, but not a complete upgrade table.

Until more launch-build evidence is checked, use the individual weapon pages for observed upgrade states and do not treat creator footage as a universal drop rule.

The Tarforge guide covers the station’s upgrade parts. Muradean Actuator unlocks primary weapon enhancement, Foundry Stone unlocks Smelt Equipment, and Endless Core removes the normal upgrade cap. Balance Patch 1 reduced the Gloom cost of Smelt Equipment by 75%, which makes recovering materials from an abandoned weapon more practical.

The page does not publish a universal material-cost or maximum-level table because the current evidence does not confirm one for all eight weapons. Great Martyr’s Blade +4 and Axatana +5 remain observed states from individual runs, not guaranteed pickup levels.

The current local patch record supports these direct primary-weapon changes:

• Great Martyr’s Blade: attack damage increased by 20%.
• Axatana: light-attack tracking improved.
• Black Needle: light-attack tracking improved.
• Clockwork Scythe: light-attack tracking improved.

The patch summary does not provide exact tracking or damage values for the latter three, so do not infer a full tier shift. Old Open Beta or pre-patch rankings should be treated as dated opinions. See the Balance Patch 1 guide for economy, enemy, Tarstone, sidearm, and platform-rollout caveats.

The only weapon/Shell pairing this hub recommends directly is Axe & Dagger with Tiel as a practical early pairing to test, because the local Axe & Dagger route page documents that use case. It is not an exclusive or mathematically best pairing.

Do not infer a complete Shell-to-weapon table from lore, loading screens, or a creator’s single build. Bonding, Seals, Tarstones, weapon upgrades, and patch state all affect the result; current evidence does not support a universal cross-Shell weapon matrix.

Choose by route and risk rather than by an unverified damage tier list:

1. The Iconoclast for immediate Prologue access. It is the guaranteed starting primary weapon, not a late route.
2. Axe & Dagger for an earlier Fainweald option. Start here if you want a relatively contained Shrine of Trials route and a dual-wield weapon path.
3. Great Martyr’s Blade for an early heavy route. Choose this when you are ready for Holding Cells and Martyr’s Prison and want a heavier option; Patch 1’s damage buff is part of the current context.
4. Axatana for an aggressive Mammon detour. Choose this when you can handle the Outskirts of Mammon and Forgotten Tower route without treating the weapon as a guaranteed first-minute pickup.
5. Black Needle, Obsidian Hammer, Veteran’s Battle Axe, or Clockwork Scythe by route identity. Use the comparison table above and follow the linked route pages; current evidence does not justify forcing these into one universal order.

If a route is underleveled, use the Gloom farming guide for safer early loops. The Slayer Seal and difficulty guide also explains an optional combat modifier, but neither page establishes a weapon tier list.

This page is an overview of the eight identified launch-build primary weapons. Seven have detailed location pages on this site; The Iconoclast is covered as Prologue starting gear rather than a separate route.

There is no official or controlled-test best-weapon ranking in the current evidence. For a practical choice, use The Iconoclast immediately, Axe & Dagger for the earlier Fainweald dual-wield route, Great Martyr’s Blade for an early heavy path, Axatana for weapon-mode experimentation, or the other four weapons by the use-case table and route you are already pursuing.

Yes. The Muradean Actuator unlocks primary weapon enhancement at the Tarforge, and gameplay footage shows upgraded weapon states. A complete material, cost, and level table is not confirmed here. Foundry Stone enables material recovery through Smelt Equipment, and Balance Patch 1 reduced that Gloom cost by 75%.

It can be obtained relatively early after reaching the Marrow Keep route, but the checked evidence does not support calling it a literal fresh-game or Prologue pickup.

No current evidence used for this page places it in the Prologue. The supported route begins after the open-world path becomes available.

Not necessarily. Older Open Beta material places it at a different location. Use the launch-build Chapel Key and Shrine of Trials route on the current Axe & Dagger guide.

• Mortal Shell II on Steam — official high-level gameplay and weapon-upgrade positioning.
• All Weapon And Sidearm Locations In Mortal Shell 2 — GameSpot — independent roster, Prologue starting gear, location checklist, and Tarforge upgrade cross-check.
• All 8 Weapons Locations — Gamer Guides — independent cross-check for the eight primary weapons and their route anchors.
• Mortal Shell 2: All 16 Weapon and Sidearm Locations — AllThings.How — eight-weapons/eight-sidearms split, route table, and Tarforge context.
• Mortal Shell 2 Balance Patch 1 — GamesRadar+ — independent patch-scope cross-check.
• Great Martyr’s Blade location guide — local launch route and transcript evidence.
• Axatana location guide — local launch route, UI confirmation, and observed inventory state.
• Axe & Dagger location guide — local launch route and Open Beta location warning.
• Mortal Shell II gameplay guide — official gameplay boundary and upgrade context.
• Tarforge guide — local upgrade-part and material-recovery contract.
• Balance Patch 1 guide — local current weapon and economy changes.
• Shells guide — Shell progression and the evidence boundary against unsupported weapon pairings.
• Local transcripts and evidence captures under research/youtube/axatana/ and research/youtube/great-martyrs-blade/.