Horizon Forbidden West: Best Bows, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Horizon: Forbidden West has multiple legendary bows with specialized arrows for different combat scenarios.
• The Iriv’s Downfall bow, exclusive to New Game Plus, tackles enemy armor best from a distance with Precision arrows.
• Carja’s Bane, the best bow in the game, requires winning all Gauntlet Runs to access its utility for hammering armor or setting foes ablaze.

Aloy’s main weapons in Horizon: Forbidden West are her bows and arrows. Raised as a hunter, she fires on her foes from all ranges, always adept at hitting their weak points. Like its predecessor, Horizon: Zero Dawn, this sequel offers plenty of bows to choose from.

However, some of these are noticeably better than others. They come with specific uses and sport specialized arrows to fulfill those uses. Aloy should naturally have the best weapons to combat her robotic enemies. It takes a keen eye to not only hit the target, but also to find the best bow in Forbidden West.

Updated December 3, 2024, by Hamza Haq: While Horizon Forbidden West has introduced Aloy to a fair few new weapon types that don’t strictly fall into the bows category, the red-headed Archer from the Nora clan will always remain just that, an Archer. And any Archer worth their salt needs a good bow on their weapon wheel, or in Aloy’s case multiple bows. There are three types of Bows offered in HFW: Hunter Bows, ever reliable with cheap ammo, Sharpshot Bows, with extremely long range and incredible damage, and Warrior Bows, with low damage but a rapid fire rate that’s perfect for inflicting status effects on enemies.

12 Firestorm Warrior Bow

Source: Finish The Gate of the Vanquished

This breaks the trend by being a Very Rare weapon, but it’s no less legendary. The Firestorm Warrior Bow shoots a barrage of light arrows. They make up for their lack of impact through sheer elemental damage, namely Fire, Acid, and Shock. It has all the advantage of the Sun Scourge with a faster rate of fire. This makes it more versatile, overall.

One of its drawbacks is that it’s primarily a close-range tool, but, thankfully, it provides an added incentive. Due to a park, the weapon’s damage increases by dealing melee attacks. It is fitting that conflict unlocks this bow, as it’s a reward for resolving the power struggle in the Gate of the Vanquished side quest.

11 Regalla’s Wrath

Source: Kill Regalla in The Wings of the Ten

Regalla’s Wrath is one of the most powerful Sharpshot bows available to players in the base game, and the best part about it is that it can be obtained easily just by progressing the main story to the point where Aloy confronts Regalla for the final time. Choosing to kill Regalla when the choice presents itself will allow players to claim Regalla’s Wrath as a reward.

This Sharpshot Bow is highly suited for taking down enemies from a long distance, making it any sniper’s dream. Its inherent buffs in Overdraw Damage increase, Long-range damage increase, and Reload Speed up synergize perfectly with this playstyle. Braced Shot is the best skill to use with this weapon, taking advantage of its inherently high damage to outright assassinate a machine before the fight even starts.

10 Iriv’s Downfall

Source: Merchant

This is a Legendary Sharpshot bow, and it’s definitely the best at what it does. It comes with several Precision arrows. These range from regular to Elite to Tearing. As a result, the weapon is ideal for chipping away at enemy armor, especially from a distance.

The perks further amplify the bow’s effect. When upgraded, they ensure a far easier time landing critical hits. Unfortunately, players can’t access this bow on a normal playthrough. Instead, they must acquire it in New Game Plus. Talk to any merchants, and they’ll sell it for Champion Coins, which are rewarded for completing quests in this mode.

9 Rain Of Sparks

Source: Merchant

Made by the Oseram people, this is another Legendary bow, albeit of the Warrior variety. The name suggests that it inflicts Shock damage, but that’s not the case. It mainly specializes in Light arrows. The regular ones are good enough at Impact damage. However, they’re far from the main draw here.

Rather, Rain of Sparks excels at Adhesive Light arrows. These stick to foes and slow them down. With this bow, players can hamper enemy progress on the fly without having to set a trap beforehand. This is perfect for sudden encounters where Aloy needs a quick upper hand. Again, all she needs are a few Champion Coins to buy this bow in New Game Plus.

8 Sun Scourge

Source: Asera

A Tenakth rebel crafted this bow to bring down the Carja kingdom, and it could definitely get the job done. A Legendary Hunter bow, the Sun Scourge obviously comes with Advanced Hunter arrows. These are solid, all-around useful projectiles that serve as the middle ground between Light and Precision arrows. To go with that useful quality, the bow also boasts a plethora of elemental enhancements. Its arrows can deal Fire, Frost, and Acid damage. That spectrum makes for a reliable weapon for various scenarios.

It only tracks that the perks would be equally convenient. The damage increases based on Agility, Overdraw, and whether enemies are in the air. Sadly, what also tracks is such a solid bow coming from hard work. Players must complete all rebel camp missions to unlock it.

7 Tears Of The Land-God

Source: Merchant

This bow’s maker wanted to honor those who’ve fallen, presumably by killing countless more people in their name. It’s a Legendary Hunter bow whose arrows “fall like rain.” Granted, that’s an exaggeration, but not by much.

Tear of the Land-God features a variety of Advanced Hunter arrows. The Precision and Targeting types deal ample Impact damage, particularly with the perk that increases Tearing. In addition, the bow has Purgewater projectiles, which must be where the metaphor comes in. With the faster draw speed (again, through perks), these arrows must feel like a lethal rainstorm. Yet another weapon is worth the Champion Coin cost in New Game Plus.

6 Forgefall

Source: Dukkah

After players unlock the Arena trials behind Memorial Grove, the very first legendary weapons in the base game will start to become available for purchase from the Prize Master Dukkah. Forgefall is a legendary variant of the Sharpshot Bow that can be bought in exchange for 80 Arena Medals. It is the best in its class until New Game Plus.

When fully upgraded, the Forgefall offers three types of arrows: Advanced Precision Arrows, which are useful in all situations; Plasma Precision Arrows, which are useful for inflicting the Plasma status effect; and Advanced Plasma Precision Arrows, which are upgraded versions of Plasma Arrows. Against mid-tier machines like Bristlebacks and Sunwings, a single Braced Shot with an Advanced Precision Arrow is more than enough to take them down in one shot. But against larger machines like Thunderjaws and Dreadwings, relying on Plasma Arrows is the way to go.

5 The Blast Forge

Source: Dukkah

The Blast Forge is a legendary Boltblaster taking the crown as the most overpowering weapon to melt large machine variants in the base game. Like the Forgefall, it can be claimed from Dukkah in exchange for 80 Arena Medals in the Maw of the Arena, behind the Memorial Grove, after this area is unlocked.

The strength of the Blast Forge lies in its ability to deal consistently high damage against literally everything. From a Slitherfang to a Tideripper to a Slaughterspine, there is nothing that doesn’t melt when hit by a Sustained Burst from a fully upgraded Blast Forge. Its ammo consists of Advanced Bolts, which are the highest damage variety of normal bolts; Explosive Bolts, which work extremely well for knocking down and staggering enemies while still dealing excellent damage; and Piercing Bolts, to help bypass heavily armored foes.

4 Death-Seeker’s Shadow

Source: Dukkah

Death-Seeker’s Shadow and Tears of the Land-god are two sides of the same coin. They’re both Legendary Hunter bows with Advanced arrows to cause significant Impact damage. What’s more is that they each have one elemental arrow. In this case, it’s Shock.

That said, the Death-seeker’s Shadow emerges a bit better. The perks give it a higher damage output. On top of that, the Targeting arrows make it easier to hit the target with a controller. PC users don’t have to worry about that, but Horizon was formerly a PlayStation exclusive. Of course, these advantages mean the bow is more difficult to acquire. Players must rack up a hefty sum of medals at the arena to earn it as a prize.

3 Carja’s Bane

Source: Finish Gauntlet Runs

A relic of the red raids, Carja’s Bane is another Legendary Warrior bow. It predictably fires Light arrows for Impact damage. However, it also features Fire arrows, inflicting Burning damage with rapid-fire shots. The constant stream of projectiles can either hammer away at enemies’ armor or set them ablaze. Anyone on the receiving end won’t be there for long.

That utility means Carja’s Bane takes some work to acquire. Aloy accesses it by partaking in the Gauntlet Runs. These are mounted races against other riders. Winning all four Gauntlets not only leads to a tremendous sense of accomplishment, but it nets players the best bow in the game.

2 Gravesinger’s Lament

Source: Fleet’s End Trader (Burning Shores DLC)

Gravesinger’s Lament is a Legendary Sharpshot Bow exclusive to the Burning Shores DLC, which can only be accessed after players have completed the main storyline of Horizon Forbidden West. It’s sold by the trader at Fleet’s End, the only Quen settlement on the island. Purchasing it requires 3,000 Metal Shards and Brimshine, a glowing yellow mineral that can be found through overworld exploration, just like Bluegleam.

The Gravesinger’s Lament offers Advanced Precision Arrows for high DPS and tear damage, Strikethrough Precision Arrows that can pass through enemies for perfect armor penetration and the ability to hit multiple targets with one shot, and Advanced Knockdown Precision Arrows that can stagger-lock even large machines with only a couple of shots.

1 The Emperor’s Reign

Source: Fleet’s End Trader (Burning Shores DLC)

The Emperor’s Reign is a Legendary Hunter Bow sold by the weapons trader found in the Quen Settlement of the Burning Shores. The Emperor’s Reign fires Advanced Hunter Arrows for reliable, high DPS—the highest of all Hunter Bows in the game, even those in New Game Plus. It also has access to Berserk Hunter Arrows to inflict berserk on enemies, turning them against allies, and Targeting Hunter Arrows, which can direct overridden machines in Aloy’s control to attack tagged enemies.

The weapon’s perks and special ability encourage a close-up and personal playstyle that’s a mix of stealth, melee, and ranged damage all wrapped in one. Pound for pound, The Emperor’s Reign has every other Hunter Bow beat in straight DPS, but it doesn’t offer any elemental effect build-up, so it’s best paired with another weapon that can pick up the slack.