Goddess of Nikke Weapon and Gear Guide: Best Guns for Every Role

In Goddess of Victory: Nikke (often shortened to “Nikke”), choosing the right weapon and gear for your characters is essential to maximizing damage, utility, and survivability. In this guide, we’ll walk through the optimal guns for each class role, plus key gear tips to power up your squad.

Weapon Types and Role Matching

Before diving into “best guns,” it helps to understand the weapon types in Nikke and how they pair with roles. There are six main weapon types: Assault Rifles, Machine Guns (Miniguns), Sniper Rifles, Shotguns, Submachine Guns (SMGs), and Rocket Launchers. Each role, Attacker, Defender, or Support, has different priorities, such as raw damage, range control, or utility.

Here are the best gun types per role:

Attackers: Focus on Damage and Flexibility

• Assault Rifle (AR): ARs are extremely well-rounded, with balanced damage, range, and magazine size. For most Attacker Nikkes, ARs are a safe pick for general content.
• Machine Gun (Minigun): If your Attacker needs sustainability, especially in long fights, MGs offer large ammo reserves and continuous output. Their downside is slower reloads.
• Sniper Rifle (SR): For burst damage against high-value targets or boss weak points, a sniper is ideal. Use it when your team needs a big poke on a distant threat.

Defenders: Control and Human Shields

Defenders are less about dealing damage and more about controlling battlefield flow or absorbing pressure. Their weapon choice is situational:

• Shotgun (SG): A shotgun can act as a deterrent in close-range engagements. If enemies close in, you want a weapon that punishes them.
• Assault Rifle (AR): ARs’ versatility still makes them viable. A Defender with a decent AR can help in mid-range engagements without being overpowered.
• Machine Gun (MG): If you want suppression capabilities or zone denial, MGs’ sustained fire can help defend choke points.

Support: Utility, Buffs, and Hybrid Roles

Support Nikkes typically don’t focus on raw DPS but rather on buffs, crowd control, or healing. Their weapon should reflect that supportive stance:

• Submachine Gun (SMG): SMGs have high fire rate and good utility for shorter-range engagements, letting a support still contribute offense without overshadowing.
• Assault Rifle (AR): For supports who need to stay versatile, an AR gives a middle ground—some damage, some ranged reach.
• Rocket Launcher (RL): Use RLs if your support has AOE buffs or if the stage demands area damage. Because RLs aren’t restricted by range and offer splash damage, they can be a tool for hybrid roles.

Top Weapons (Named Picks & Considerations)

While general weapon class matters most, some specific named weapons or archetypes stand out:

• High-Damage SR or RL units excel in boss or heavy-target content. Use their charge weapons to maximize output.
• MG/AR hybrids are helpful when facing waves or long skirmishes where ammo sustainability is key.
• Close-range burst units benefit most from SG or SMG picks in tight maps or ambush scenarios.

Because many weapons in Nikke are fictional or stylized, you’ll want to pick based on stats (damage, reload, charge speed) more than real-world analogs.

Gear and Overload Strategy for Strengthening Your Guns

Optimal weapons are only part of the puzzle, gear and Overload (OL) enhancements are critical. Each Nikke has four gear slots (Head, Torso, Arms, Legs), and only gear matching the Nikke’s class (Attacker, Supporter, Defender) can be used.

Prioritizing Sub-stats

When overloading gear, focus on these sub-stats (depending on role):

• Attack (ATK), Critical Rate, Critical Damage – essential for DPS/Attacker builds
• Max Ammunition Capacity – helps reduce reload downtime, especially for AR and MG users
• Charge Speed / Charge Damage – critical for Sniper or Rocket Launcher users (charge weapons)
• Defense, HP – important for Defenders
• Balanced stats – for Support Nikkes

Guides on Overload priority suggest you aim first for “Essential” lines on your gear, then “Ideal” lines, before touching “Passable” ones.

Manufacturer Bonuses & Gear Rotation

From Tier 4 onward, manufacturer bonuses can boost stats further when the gear’s manufacturer matches the Nikke’s. Also, use old gear as upgrade fodder, don’t overly invest in gear you don’t plan to stick with.