Mods

Mods are the parts that change how a weapon shoots or swings. They come in three kinds. Scopes and muzzles are attachments for guns. Weapon mods add a stat bonus or a special effect to a gun or a melee weapon. A scope changes zoom and effective range. A muzzle either silences the gun or steadies it. A weapon mod can add Crit Chance, make a magazine bigger or let a blade cut an enemy apart. Mods let V shape a weapon around a build without changing the weapon itself.

Every mod has a tier, just like a weapon. A mod can only go on a weapon of the same tier or a higher one. A Tier 4 scope fits a Tier 5 gun, but a Tier 5 scope does not fit a Tier 4 gun.

Attachments and weapon mods follow different rules once they are installed. Scopes and muzzles can be taken off a gun at any time and moved to another one. A weapon mod stays in the weapon for good. Iconic mods are the exception, and they can be moved like an attachment.

Slots

Each weapon has its own set of slots. Ranged weapons can have a scope slot and a muzzle slot. Melee weapons take no attachments at all. Every weapon class can hold up to two weapon mods. The mod slots open from Tier 2.

Scopes come in three sizes. Short scopes fit handguns, submachine guns, assault rifles and shotguns. Long scopes fit assault rifles and the SOR-22, the one precision rifle with a scope slot. Sniper scopes fit only sniper rifles, and a sniper rifle must always carry one. Some sniper scopes are made for Power rifles and others for Tech rifles.

Muzzle attachments are made for Power weapons. Silencers and muzzle brakes fit Power pistols, submachine guns and assault rifles. Tech weapons take no muzzle. Smart weapons take neither a scope nor a muzzle.

Weapon mods are sorted by what they fit. Some fit every ranged weapon or every melee weapon. Others fit only one weapon class, such as shotguns, or one weapon type, such as Tech or Blade weapons. A few fit thrown knives and axes.

Mod Categories

Best Mods

The strongest mods of every class, taken from the Best table of each class page.

Name	Image	Class	Why
Jue		Scopes	Up to 60% more effective range
SO-21 Saika		Scopes	Crit Chance and Crit Damage at long range
XC-10 Cetus		Muzzles	150% more stealth damage
TSX Tocororo		Muzzles	Stealth damage and Crit Chance at Tier 4
Wallpuncher		Weapon Mods	Doubles the charge limit with full Armor Penetration
Severance		Weapon Mods	Melee hits can kill a wounded enemy outright

Iconic Mods

Iconic mods are rare weapon mods with effects that ordinary mods cannot match. Four of them come from the Active Chimera Core in Phantom Liberty. The core drops from the Militech Chimera, a boss that V fights in the main job Spider and the Fly. Each mod is made for a different weapon type.

• Firecracker makes a Power weapon shoot explosive rounds.
• Wallpuncher lets a Tech weapon charge to 200% and gives its shots full Armor Penetration through cover.
• Hackatomy gives a Smart weapon's hits a chance to apply a quickhack effect.
• Severance gives melee hits to the head or limbs a chance to dismember and kill a badly wounded enemy.

The core can be used only once. Crafting one of the four mods uses it up, so a playthrough gets only one of them. Each comes at Tier 5.

Iconic mods also behave differently from ordinary mods. V can take one out of a weapon and move it to another weapon of the right type. The game removes it on its own when the weapon is sold, dismantled or dropped. The mod is never lost with the weapon.

Crafting and Vendors

Weapon vendors sell scopes, muzzles and ranged weapon mods. Melee weapon vendors sell melee mods. Their stock changes over time, and skipping time by a day brings in new items. Better tiers appear in a vendor's stock as V gains levels. Some scopes reach the shelves only in the middle or late game.

Mods also come from loot. Enemies and containers drop them, and their tier depends on V's level. Airdrops in Phantom Liberty hold mods of higher tiers.

Crafting turns two copies into a better one. A pair of the same mod at the same tier can be combined at the crafting menu into one copy a tier higher. Some mods come only at the highest tier, such as Kneel! and Slice 'Em Up at Tier 5.

Character Builds

• Silent gunner. A silencer such as the CS-1 Taipan or the XC-10 Cetus on a Power gun. Killer Instinct raises damage with silenced guns outside of combat. Ninjutsu lets V sprint while crouched and stay silent.
• Marksman. A long or sniper scope with Headtoll, Stabilizer or Fleetshot. Focus and Deadeye add headshot and weak spot damage. Long Shot keeps shots at full damage at any distance while Deadeye is active.
• Tech charger. Wallpuncher, C-Thru, Supercharger or Spinetickler on a Tech weapon. Bolt raises charge speed, and In Charge lets V hold a full charge until the shot lines up.
• Smart gunner. Headhopper, Panorama or Gambiteer on a Smart weapon. Targeting Prism adds a lock-on target, and Smart Synergy gives instant locks during Overclock.
• Bullet hose. Big Mag, Better Half and the RC-7 Varkolak on an automatic Power gun. Spray And Pray and Ready, Rested, Reloaded lower the Stamina cost of shooting. Shoot To Chill adds Armor Penetration for automatic weapons.
• Shotgun brawler. Vivisector or Kneel! on a shotgun. Rip And Tear trades bonus damage between shotgun shots and Quick Melee Attacks.
• Blade dancer. Bleedout, Haemocide or Slice 'Em Up on a blade. Slaughterhouse makes every attack apply Bleeding, and Lead And Steel lowers the Stamina cost of blade attacks.
• Ghost. Pax on any weapon makes every takedown non-lethal. It adds damage outside of combat, so the opening strike still lands hard.