Going Medieval Best Weapons Ranked

S S-Tier: Longsword — The Colony's Finest

The Longsword is the undisputed king of melee combat in Going Medieval. A Steel Longsword at Flawless quality delivers 53.76 damage per hit with an attack interval of 3.6 seconds, yielding approximately 14.93 DPS — the highest sustained melee damage output in the game. Its 70% armor penetration ensures that even heavily armored raiders take meaningful damage, and its 60% armor damage means it steadily degrades enemy protective gear with each strike. The longsword is a two-handed weapon, which means your settler cannot equip a shield alongside it, but the sheer offensive power compensates: most raiders die in two to three hits, minimizing the window for return attacks.

The catch is accessibility. The Longsword requires the Blacksmithing research tree to be fully completed, a Smithing skill of 20 to craft, and a Melee skill of 15 to wield. This makes it a mid-to-late game weapon — you will not be forging longswords in your first season. The recipe costs 35 metal and 25 fuel per sword, so stockpiling iron and steel ingots is essential. Once you have a settler with the requisite melee skill wielding a Steel Longsword, they become a one-colonist raid defense force. Position them at chokepoints or behind your defensive walls, and they will hold the line against any ground assault. For more on defensive positioning, see our Defense Guide.

A A-Tier: Two-Handed Mace — The Armor Breaker

The Two-Handed Mace earns A-tier for one extraordinary stat: 190% armor damage. While its raw DPS (approximately 4.44–7.78 depending on material and quality) is lower than the Longsword, no weapon in the game shreds enemy armor faster. Each swing pulverizes shields, helmets, and chest plates, stripping raiders of their protection so that subsequent hits — from the mace wielder or adjacent settlers — deal full damage to unarmored bodies. The Two-Handed Mace also boasts 150% building damage, making it useful for demolishing enemy siege structures or clearing rubble.

With a Smithing requirement of only 10 (versus the Longsword's 20), the Two-Handed Mace is accessible much earlier in the game. It costs 15 metal and 10 fuel to craft — less than half the material cost of a Longsword. The 5.4-second attack duration is slow, meaning missed swings are punishing, but when paired with a high-melee-skill settler, each connecting hit sends raiders staggering. The ideal setup is a Two-Handed Mace wielder behind a shield wall of one-handed fighters: the shield bearers absorb incoming arrows and hold the line, while the mace swings overhead to crush armor. This combination is devastating against mid-game raider waves that begin arriving with iron and steel armor.

B B-Tier: Short Sword & Mace (One-Handed) — The Shield Wall

Short Sword and Mace (one-handed variants) share B-tier because they fill the same critical role: shield-compatible melee weapons. In Going Medieval, a settler with a one-handed weapon and a shield gains the defensive benefits of blocking — dramatically reducing incoming damage from arrows and melee attacks — while still contributing offensive output. A Steel Short Sword at Flawless quality deals 26.88 damage per hit with 7.47 DPS, which is respectable for a one-handed weapon. Its 70% armor penetration matches the Longsword, making it effective against lightly-to-moderately armored foes.

The one-handed Mace trades raw DPS (6.64 at Steel Flawless) for extraordinary armor damage: 200%, the highest of any weapon in the game. This makes the one-handed mace the premier choice for settler bodyguards who need to break through enemy armor while maintaining shield protection. Both weapons require zero Smithing skill to craft and zero Melee skill to wield, making them available from the very start of the game. Their low material cost (15 metal, 10–15 fuel) means you can outfit an entire colony quickly. For early-game defense before Longswords become available, a wall of Short Sword and shield settlers backed by archers is the gold standard. Learn more about combining melee and ranged in our Crossbow Defense Guide.

C C-Tier: Wooden Spear, Hatchet & Cudgel — Early Game Fillers

These weapons exist for one reason: you need something sharp before you have a functioning blacksmith. The Wooden Spear, Hatchet, and Cudgel are all craftable at the Woodwork Bench with basic materials and no skill requirements. They deal low damage and have poor armor penetration, but they are better than sending settlers into combat unarmed. The Hatchet doubles as a woodcutting tool, making it a pragmatic early-game choice. The Cudgel is the cheapest weapon in the game to produce. Once you establish a Blacksmith's Forge and begin producing Iron Short Swords, retire these wooden weapons immediately — the damage gap is enormous.

S Heavy Crossbow — The Siege Stopper

The Heavy Crossbow is the most powerful ranged weapon in Going Medieval. At Flawless quality, a single bolt deals 50.4 damage — enough to kill or cripple most unarmored raiders in one shot. Its 92% armor penetration means that even steel-clad enemies absorb only 8% of the bolt's force, making it the premier counter to late-game armored raids. The 25-meter range matches the standard Crossbow, giving your marksmen maximum engagement distance from tower positions.

The trade-off is speed: with an attack duration of 9.3–11.1 seconds depending on quality, the Heavy Crossbow has the slowest fire rate of any ranged weapon. This makes misses extremely costly. Additionally, it requires a Marksman skill of 15 to wield and Carpentry 20 plus the Crossbows II research to craft. The recipe demands 45 wood and 3 Mechanical Components — a mid-to-late game resource that requires advance preparation. The Heavy Crossbow truly shines when positioned on elevated towers where it can fire multiple shots before enemies close the distance. Pair it with Longbow archers who provide covering fire during reload windows for a devastating combined-arms defense.

A Longbow & Crossbow — The Workhorses

The Longbow delivers the best sustained ranged DPS in the game. With 22 damage per shot and a 5.4-second attack interval, it produces approximately 4.07 DPS — nearly matching the Heavy Crossbow's output while firing twice as fast. Its 80% armor penetration and 18-meter range make it effective against most raiders through the mid-game. The Longbow requires only a Marksman skill of 10 and 40 wood to craft, with no metal or mechanical components needed. This accessibility, combined with strong performance, makes the Longbow the default ranged weapon for most of the game.

The standard Crossbow trades fire speed for armor penetration. Its 90% armor penetration and 50% armor damage outperform the Longbow against armored targets, and its 25-meter range gives it a 7-meter advantage in engagement distance. However, the slow 9–10 second reload and lower DPS (2.06–3.47) make it less efficient against unarmored foes. The Crossbow requires zero Marksman skill to use — any settler can pick one up and fire it — but needs Carpentry 20 and the Crossbows I research to craft, plus 35 wood and 2 Mechanical Components. The ideal ranged defense combines both: Longbows for volume of fire against light raiders, Crossbows for armor-piercing shots against heavy units.