DefOrbit has six weapons, each with four evolution tiers (I → II → III → MAX). You carry a primary and a secondary slot and swap between them with Q. Weapons evolve by collecting matching weapon drops mid-wave. Three weapons are unlocked from the start; three more are earned through milestones. Stats below are taken directly from the game source. See How to Play for controls, or Bosses for encounter strategies.
Balanced auto-fire cannon
The Pulse Cannon is your reliable workhorse. It fires single accurate projectiles at a solid rate with zero spread, making it effective at any range. At Tier III it gains a second simultaneous projectile, and at MAX both projectiles pierce through multiple enemies with an extended lifetime. A safe default for any playstyle — consistent damage output throughout every wave.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | COUNT | PIERCE |
|---|
| Pulse I | 8 | 1 | 800 | 1 | — |
| Pulse II | 11 | 1 | 850 | 1 | — |
| Pulse III | 11 | 1 | 850 | 2 | — |
| Pulse MAX | 12 | 1 | 900 | 2 | YES |
Wide spread, lower damage
Scatter Shot fires a fan of projectiles simultaneously, trading single-target accuracy for wide-angle coverage. It excels at clearing dense swarms where precise aim is difficult. The spread angle widens at Tier III and the projectile count increases at every tier up to seven at MAX, which also raises damage per shot. Pair it as a secondary alongside a focused primary to cover different threat types.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | SPREAD | COUNT |
|---|
| Scatter I | 5 | 0.6 | 700 | 0.2 | 3 |
| Scatter II | 5 | 0.6 | 700 | 0.2 | 5 |
| Scatter III | 6 | 0.6 | 720 | 0.35 | 5 |
| Scatter MAX | 6 | 0.8 | 750 | 0.35 | 7 |
Slow, high single-target damage
Plasma Lance fires a single heavy bolt with the highest raw damage of any non-AoE weapon. Its low fire rate demands deliberate aim — but each hit deals four times the damage of a Pulse Cannon shot. Fire rate improves from 2.5 to 4 shots per second across tiers. At Tier III the bolt gains piercing, punching through multiple targets in a line. MAX sacrifices a small amount of damage per shot (3.5 vs 4) but compensates with the highest projectile speed and longest range in the game.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | COUNT | PIERCE |
|---|
| Lance I | 2.5 | 4 | 1200 | 1 | — |
| Lance II | 3.5 | 4 | 1400 | 1 | — |
| Lance III | 3.5 | 4 | 1400 | 1 | YES |
| Lance MAX | 4 | 3.5 | 1500 | 1 | YES |
Auto-targeting, low damage
Homing Darts lock onto the nearest enemy and steer toward it, removing the need for precise manual aim. Each dart deals low damage but the auto-targeting makes them near-impossible to waste. At Tier II a second simultaneous dart is added; at MAX three darts fire per shot. Turn rate increases with each tier (3 → 3.5 → 4 → 4.5 rad/s), making MAX-tier darts highly manoeuvrable. Homing Darts are particularly effective against fast, erratic enemies that are hard to track manually.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | COUNT | TURN RATE |
|---|
| Homing I | 6 | 0.5 | 500 | 1 | 3 |
| Homing II | 8 | 0.5 | 550 | 2 | 3.5 |
| Homing III | 8 | 0.6 | 600 | 2 | 4 |
| Homing MAX | 10 | 0.6 | 600 | 3 | 4.5 |
Explosive AoE projectiles
Plasma Burst fires slow-moving projectiles that explode on contact, dealing area-of-effect damage to all enemies within the blast radius. The explosion radius grows from 80 units at Tier I to 130 units at MAX — wide enough to clear entire clusters with a single well-placed shot. At Tier III a second projectile fires per burst with a slight spread. Despite its low fire rate, the AoE potential makes it devastating in dense waves and against grouped enemies near Earth.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | COUNT | BLAST RADIUS |
|---|
| Burst I | 3 | 2 | 400 | 1 | 80 |
| Burst II | 3.5 | 3 | 400 | 1 | 100 |
| Burst III | 3.5 | 3 | 420 | 2 | 100 |
| Burst MAX | 4 | 4 | 420 | 2 | 130 |
Bounces between enemies
Ricochet Bolts are the hardest weapon to unlock and the most rewarding to use in tight situations. Each bolt bounces between nearby enemies after its first impact, chaining damage across the whole group. Bounces increase from 2 at Tier I to 5 at MAX. At Tier III a second bolt fires per shot, and the projectile lifetime extends to give bolts more time to find their next target. Ricochet Bolts are at their strongest when enemies are clustered — every bounce hits a fresh target for free.
| TIER | FIRE RATE | DAMAGE | SPEED | COUNT | BOUNCES |
|---|
| Ricochet I | 4 | 0.8 | 900 | 1 | 2 |
| Ricochet II | 5 | 0.8 | 950 | 1 | 3 |
| Ricochet III | 5 | 1 | 950 | 2 | 3 |
| Ricochet MAX | 6 | 1 | 1000 | 2 | 5 |