Weapons

Accompanying magick, characters are also able to wield various weapons. Each character has their own unique arsenal, and the weapons available correspond to the era of which the chapters take place.

The ultimate weapon is not easily found in the game, and can be missed entirely, because it is the reward of a sidequest involving three "defeated figures" in the Forbidden City. It is the Enchanted Gladius, a sword permanently empowered by the magick which directly threatens Pious Augustus's Ancient. If Karim, Roberto Bianchi and Michael Edwards all find a statue of the jewels (and the remaining statue of their predecessor), Michael can, through a simple puzzle, obtain the Enhanted Gladius. However, only Alexandra Roivas has the power to use it.

List of Weapons

Melee

Unarmed (punching)

All characters have this. However, it can't be relied on because it's weak to the point of uselessness. NPCs taken over by Bonethieves, on the other hand, make their punched victim flinch and bleed.

Gladius

The gladius is a Roman short sword. Pious Augustus starts his chapter with it, and it is the only weapon available to him for the entire chapter. Alex also obtains it, from a plaque in the secret room where the Tome of Eternal Darkness is found, and she needs it to unseal the door to the pantry later.

Short Sword

The Short Sword is Ellia's starting weapon. It is not very powerful, but attacks fairly fast. When Ellia picks up the Blowgun later, she falls through a trap door and breaks her sword in the process. Ellia can get it repaired if she's quick enough to save the guard in the same room from the Zombies, otherwise it is lost for the remainder of the chapter.

Historically, it seems to resemble a type of bolo knife called a talibong.

Torch

The Torch is mainly used for lighting up dark places, but it can also defeat Mantorok & Xel'lotath Zombies in a single blow as both are vulnerable to fire. Against other enemies, it is all but useless. Both Lindsey and Roberto start with one. Anthony must obtain the one dropped by the acolyte he encounters to uncover a hidden door. Karim, Paul and Peter can also find ones, but are not required to do so.

Scramasax

Anthony's normal weapon. Before his second zombification, he chucks the sword down into his enemy. After the third stage, he simply stabs like Pious does.

Two-Edged Sword

The Two-Edged Sword, or Bastard Sword, is a semi-optional weapon that can be first obtained in Anthony's chapter by saving the monk in the catacombs. Talking to the monk reveals that the blade was formerly wielded by the Bishop, who had discarded it after the monk initially fled. The monk then gives the blade to Anthony. If the weapon was obtained by Anthony earlier in the game, he will wield it when Paul Luther fights him in 1485. Defeating Anthony will grant players the Two-Edged Sword. The weapon appears a final time during Peter Jacob's chapter, where it can be obtained off of a wooden plaque in the Old Tower regardless of Anthony having gained it.

Tulwar

The Tulwar is a sword designed mainly for slashing. Only Karim uses it; he starts his chapter with one and can find a second one later on. Its short length makes it useful in the many narrow tunnels of the level, and once he obtains the second one, his attack speed is upgraded considerably.

Ram Dao

The Ram Dao is a large broadsword, and one of the most powerful melee weapons in the game. It is used only by Karim, who finds it thrusted into a stone block in the last third of his level. Its overhead slash can kill a Zombie in a single blow, and properly enchanted it can take down even a Horror in seconds. Its untargetted horizontal slash can knock down groups of enemies at once, which comes in handy in the last few battles of the chapter. Its size also gives it great reach, but also makes it more likely to get stuck against the wall in small quarters. Its attack speed is also fairly slow, especially compared to the dual tulwars.

Sabre

The sabre is a curved sword with a hand guard, and designed mainly for slashing. Both Maximilian and Edward can pick one up in their respective chapters, and for both it is the only melee weapon available to them.  It isn't very powerful, but it attacks pretty fast.

Kukri

An "L"-shaped sword with a majority of the weight placed in the thickest part of the blade, making it a fine chopping tool. Only Dr. Edwin Lindsey can use it for melee combat.

Mace

The Mace is basically a metal club with sharp metal fangs added to the head for extra punch. It is only available to Paul Luther, who can pick it up from a display on the wall in the cathedral's basement, next to the bellows of the organ. While he isn't required to pick it up, it's probably best to do so, as the only other weapon available at that point is the limited Crossbow. The mace attacks fairly fast and deals decent damage, and its relatively small size makes it useful in the narrow corridors under the cathedral.

Saif

An Arabian longsword, similar to the sabre. Roberto can find it discarded on a ledge, in a room similar to where Karim teleported to the Forbidden City.

Fire Axe

This heavy-duty axe is the starting weapon for Michael. It is somewhat slow and clumsy to wield, but it does deal good damage to whatever it hits. But, since the OICW and the Glock are found in the very first room, chances are that the axe won't see much use unless you run out of ammo.

Non-Firearm Ranged

Blowgun

The Blowgun is a hollow tube for blowing poisonous darts at enemies. Only Ellia can use it; it is found on a pedestal in the back of the temple, and she must pick it up to proceed to the lower levels of the temple. Unless Ellia saves the nearby guard and gets her short sword repaired, the blowgun will also be her only available weapon for the remainder of the chapter. It comes with 99 darts, but they cannot be replenished. When struck by a dart, an enemy continues to take damage from the poison over time, Mantorok-enchanted weapons & spells can also do this.

Chakram

Chakrams are sharpened metal rings that are thrown at enemies. They are not designed to return to the user, and once thrown they are lost. Karim starts his chapter with a stack of 19, and there are no opportunities to get more of them. They aren't very powerful, and as such only useful for taking out Trappers.

Crossbow

The Crossbow is an optional weapon in two chapters. It fires wooden bolts at enemies. While the bolts do pack quite a punch, it holds only one shot at a time and the reload speed is horridly slow. Both Paul and Roberto can find one fairly easily, but aren't required to pick it up to complete their chapters.

Enchanted Gladius

The Enchanted Gladius is not easily found in the game, and can be missed entirely, because it is the reward of a sidequest involving three "defeated figures" in the Forbidden City. It is a gladius permanently empowered by the magick which directly threatens Pious Augustus's Ancient. If Karim, Roberto Bianchi and Michael Edwards all find a statue of jewel (and the remaining statue of their predecessor), Michael can, through a simple puzzle, obtain the Enchanted Gladius. However, only Alexandra Roivas has the power to use it. The Enchanted Gladius can be thrown at enemies when they are being targeted by the player. If an enemy is just outside of melee range, the blade will not leave Alex's hand. While this ability is very useful, Alex cannot target Trappers with the blade and by the time players can wield the sword there are only five enemies left in the game that it can be used on, assuming that all of the enemies in the Roivas Mansion have been killed beforehand.

Firearms

Flintlock Pistol

The Flintlock Pistol is an early firearm which fires round lead bullets. Only Maximilian can use it; he starts his chapter with one, and can pick a second one up in the secret room where the Tome is found. Satchels with additional bullets can be found in various places in the mansion. The bullets do pack quite a punch and can take out a Horror in 4-5 shots, but the pistols only hold one shot each and the reload speed is pretty slow. If Max is low on sanity and has both pistols, he can hallucinate about accidentally shooting himself while reloading.

Smith and Wesson 37 Revolver

This American-made revolver is found by Alexandra Roivas in a wardrobe hidden by a magic, in a bedroom of the Roivas mansion. Alexandra obtains the gun at the same time than the page of the chapter of Edwin Lindsey. It have a capacity of 5 powerful rounds of 38 special. (unlike the others revolvers which have a capacity of 6 )

Colt M1911 Pistol

The M1911 is a famous American-made automatic pistol that holds up 8 bullets of .45 auto (suggesting that Lindsey always loads his gun with an extra bullet in the chamber, the 1911 normally has a capacity of 7 bullets), a type of ammo that is rather powerful, more than the 9mm Glock 17. Edwin Lindsey, the character who use this weapon, unfortunately cannot find more .45 auto ammo for his M1911 in Angkor Thom (except in some of his hallucinations). It is possible that the developers wanted to put realism (and increasing the difficulty) into the game, it is unrealistic that there would be ammo for modern weapons in the ancient ruins.

Remington 870 Shotgun

It is a shotgun used by Edwin Lindsey in 1983. Like his M1911 pistol, he can't find any ammo for this gun during his chapter. This shotgun is similar to the Winchester 1300 used by Alexandra Roivas. Both shotguns have a capacity of 7 12 gauge shotgun shells, and they are effective against many enemies in close range .

Lebel Revolver

It is a revolver used by the French Military during the 20th century, one is found by Peter Jacob in 1916 in the cathedral of Amiens. This model of revolver is not as powerful as the S&W 37 used by Alexandra Roivas. This gun is more useful against the classic enemies like the trappers and the zombies.

Lee-Enfield Rifle

An British bolt-action rifle used by the English military during World War 1. Peter Jacob uses one when the monsters invade the Cathedral . It has an ammo capacity of 10 303 rifle rounds, making it useful against the more resistant enemies like the Horrors.

Webley Revolver

A British-made (apparently imported in America) revolver found by Edward Roivas in 1950, in the secret room near the library of the Roivas Mansion. Like the S&W 37 used by Alexandra, its ammunition boxes are marked "38 special" and seems to have the same firepower. Both revolvers have also a steel finish, but the Webley have 6 bullets compared to the S&W 37.

Holland and Holland Elephant Gun

The Holland and Holland Double Rifle is found in the Roivas Mansion in 1952, only if Edward Roivas manages to save the servant in the master bedroom from being killed by the Vampire. This high-caliber shotgun, designed for hunting great animals, is also very effective at bringing down Horrors and Guardians. The weapon can be fired one barrel at a time, or both can be fired simultaneously for maximum damage.

Unless Edward fully steadies his targeting, the recoil will make him flinch upon firing.

Ithaca Model A Shotgun

Found in the Roivas mansion's cellar, it is a double-barreled shotgun which has the same functions as the Holland and Holland Double Rifle, but it shoots buckshots of 12 gauge and so it is less powerful than the Elephant Gun.

Winchester 1300 Shotgun

This pump-action shotgun is available to Alex Roivas as soon as she has gained access to the mansion basement. It is described as the finest shotgun ever made, and rightly so. It has a magazine for up to 7 shells, and each one packs a hell of a punch. Due to the pump mechanism, it also reloads pretty fast. The number of shells available for it is very limited though, so unless you obtained the enchanted gladius, you should save them for the battle with Pious.

Alex also wields this gun in the dream sequence at the start of the game.

Glock 17 Pistol

The Glock 17 is an austrian semi automatic pistol with a 17 9mm round magazine found by Michael Edwards in 1991. Unlike most pistols, in addition to being able to deal with Trappers, it does enough damage to deal with larger threats such as Zombies and Horrors, though it is largely supplanted by the OICW in that regard.

XM29 OICW Assault Rifle/Grenade Launcher

The Objective Individual Combat Weapon OICW, also known as the XM29 is a prototype weapon combining a Heckler and Koch G36 assault rifle and a 20mm grenade launcher. The weapon is found by Michael Edwards in the Middle East in 1991. The weapon is one of the best in the game, with four modes of fire, semi automatic, three-round burst, full auto, and grenade. The semi-automatic mode is most useful against Trappers, while the burst or full auto mode can be used against Zombies. Horrors and Gatekeepers are most easily dealt with using the grenade launcher, which can take then down in 1-2 shots. Barring that, fully automatic fire can quickly kill a horror. Like all weapons, it can only harm Gatekeepers from the rear or when their wings are spread.

Trivia

• Karim and Maximilian Roivas are the only playable characters who can use two weapons simultaneously.
• Even though the Blowgun Darts have a model, the ammo is nowhere to be found in Ellia's game without witnessing the insanity.
• The Winchester Model 1300 Defender, alongside Alexandra Roivas, would later cameo on the centerfold of the book item in Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, due to that game sharing the same developer as Eternal Darkness, Silicon Knights.